The European Commission has officially signed the Africa-EU Space Partnership Programme, a EUR 100 million initiative to strengthen space cooperation between Europe and Africa. This milestone, resulting from years of collaboration, is a flagship component of the EU’s Global Gateway strategy, reinforcing commitments to sustainable development, the green transition, and digitalisation across the African continent.
The programme will be officially launched at the NewSpace Africa Conference in April 2025, marking the beginning of its implementation.
Strengthening EU-Africa Space Collaboration
The signing ceremony, held on the sidelines of the EU Space Conference in Brussels, brought together key representatives from both regions. Attendees included H.E. Dr Tidiane Ouattara, President, Council of African Space Agency; Dr Josef Aschbacher, Director General, European Space Agency (ESA); Phil Evans, Director General, European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT), Florence Rabier, Director General, European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF); Marjeta Jäger, Deputy Director-General, International Partnerships (INTPA), European Commission; Cecilia Donati, Policy Officer Space Cooperation, European Commission; and Catherine Kavvada, Director, Coordinator for Innovation, Applications, and International Cooperation, European Commission.
Key Priorities of the Programme
According to the European Union’s mission statement, the initiative will focus on three strategic areas:
1. Advancing the Green Transition
The programme will leverage space-based services to enhance early warning systems for hazardous weather and climate-related events, strengthening disaster preparedness and response. Africa, which is disproportionately affected by climate change, will benefit from improved monitoring and mitigation strategies.
2. Strengthening Institutional Collaboration
The initiative will strengthen EU-Africa decision-making frameworks, improving policy coordination and governance in the space sector. By promoting institutional partnerships, it aims to create an enabling environment for sustainable space development.
3. Boosting Private Sector Growth and Innovation
The programme will enhance Africa’s space industry by supporting capacity building, innovation, and the development of a space-based data economy. In addition, European private companies will be actively engaged in service provision, technology transfer, and training, promoting mutual benefits for African and European stakeholders.
Beyond strengthening Africa’s space capabilities, the initiative also opens doors for European space companies, providing access to new markets and opportunities for collaboration. By promoting innovation and competitiveness, the programme ensures Europe remains a key player in global space cooperation.
Jozef Síkela, Commissioner for International Partnerships, emphasised the significance of this initiative, stating: “The Africa-EU Space Partnership Programme is a vital part of our cooperation with Africa. Together, we will harness space technology to tackle global challenges, strengthen resilience against climate change, drive digitalisation, and build lasting partnerships. Space is the new frontier of progress, and through this programme, we are ensuring that Africa can fully benefit from its potential.”
A Legacy of EU-Africa Space Cooperation
This new Africa-EU Space Partnership Programme builds upon over two decades of collaboration, during which the EU has invested EUR 200 million in Africa’s space sector. The programme will leverage key European space technologies, including Copernicus (Earth observation), Galileo and EGNOS (satellite navigation), and GMES and Africa, for space-based data access for natural resource management and climate monitoring.
By increasing the adoption of space-based data and strengthening institutional and private sector capacity, the programme will enable African nations to:
- Monitor environmental changes more effectively
- Reduce disaster risks through advanced early warning systems
- Support sustainable economic growth, including safer air traffic management via Africa’s Satellite Navigation (SatNav) system
The programme’s first phase, which will begin in early 2025, will focus on building institutional capacity, developing technical infrastructure, and fostering innovation to ensure long-term resilience and growth. Key implementing partners include the European Space Agency (ESA), EUMETSAT, ECMWF, African Union Commission (AUC), the Agency for the Safety of Aviation in Africa and Madagascar (ASECNA) and the African Space Agency (AfSA).
Source: https://spaceinafrica.com/2025/01/30/africa-and-eu-sign-new-eur-100-million-space-partnership-programme/
