The Republic of Congo has become the first Central African state to join the United Nations Sustainable Space program. As part of this initiative, a Space Technology Center is being established in Brazzaville, specializing in the use of satellite data for agriculture and climatology.
The first concrete step was signing an agreement with the European Space Agency for free access to data from the Copernicus satellite system. Congolese engineers are already developing an Agri-Space platform to analyze soil conditions, forecast cassava harvests, and monitor water resources.
“Space is no longer a luxury, declares the Minister of Digital Technologies. For us, it is a tool for survival. Satellite imagery will help us predict droughts three months before they occur.”
In the training laboratories of the Center, 50 young specialists are taking courses in satellite navigation, remote sensing, and space image processing. Concurrently, work on the first national nanosatellite, Congo-Sat-1, whose launch is scheduled for 2027, is progressing.
Experts note that Congo’s entry into the space sector is part of a global trend: 14 African countries already have satellites in orbit. Investments in space technologies could bring the Congolese economy up to $200 million per year, through the optimization of agriculture, forestry, and fishing.