BOTSAT’s Success Story A Blueprint For Emerging Space Nations

With the prospective launch of the country’s first satellite, BOTSAT-1, in 2025, Botswana is positioning itself to maximise the opportunities in the rapidly growing space industry.

The development of BOTSAT-1 is particularly remarkable given that Botswana currently lacks both a space agency and a space policy framework to drive and coordinate such space activities.

This achievement is even more notable because it was driven by roughly 80 volunteers from the Botswana International University of Science and Technology BIUST, highlighting their deep dedication to advancing the nation’s space capabilities.

The project’s placement within BIUST required various university departments to take on roles typically found in a space agency, including administrative units like human resources, legal, and finance.

Under the leadership of the Vice Chancellor’s office, BIUST effectively simulated the operations of a space agency, coordinating multiple departments and allocating resources in a way that demonstrated how different components must work together for a successful space mission.

We talked to Dimane MPOELENG, PhD, the project lead for the BOTSAT-1 mission, for exclusive insights into the project’s current state and future goals for the Botswana space programme.

We will soon install a large radio telescope at BIUST as part of the Africa Very Long Baseline Interferometry AVN, a group of interconnected radio telescopes across the African continent, contributing to radio astronomy science.

The telescope will also contribute to the Square Kilometre Array SKA project.

The team at BIUST has been making preliminary designs for the base and the 30-plus metre antenna dish; hence, the project is progressing well.

Additionally, the president’s engagement with Space X officials to discuss Starlink operations in the country is expected to lead to more collaboration between Starlink and Botswana soon.

Starlink plans to build two or three ground stations in Botswana, mirroring its recently established Point of Presence PoP in Kenya.