President Bola Tinubu has directed the immediate release of approved funds for the maintenance of Nigeria’s space assets.
The directive was issued on Tuesday at the first ever meeting of the National Space Council held at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, where the President was represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima. The move is aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s space programme, ensuring accountability in implementation and positioning the country to compete in the rapidly expanding
global space economy.
Speaking on behalf of the President, Shettima made clear that Nigeria intends to be an active player in the unfolding global space race rather than a spectator. “Nigeria will not watch the new frontier unfold from the sideline. We will participate, we will compete, we will contribute. Our space ambitions must be anchored in outcomes, accountability and national value,” he declared.
Tinubu also approved that the cost of implementing the revised 25-year roadmap for the National Space Policy and Programme be forwarded to the Federal Executive Council for consideration and approval, a move that signals the administration intends to embed space development into its broader governance and budgetary framework.
The President did not limit his directive to funding alone. He directed Nigeria’s space agency to enforce space regulations and spectrum management under the NASDRA Act 2010 and ordered all Ministries, Departments and Agencies as well as private sector stakeholders to comply with the space regulatory framework. He also instructed the Federal Ministry of Finance to ensure the timely release of all approved funds for the programme.
The meeting produced several other significant decisions. The Council approved the constitution of a working group of space experts drawn from the Nigerian Space Research and Development Agency, the Nigerian Communications Commission, the National Defence Space Agency and the Nigerian Communications Satellite Limited, among others, to refine and implement the revised 25-year space roadmap.
Perhaps the most forward looking approval of the day was the establishment of a new facility. The Council approved the development and operationalisation of the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Space Centre in Epe, Lagos, which will enhance Nigeria’s capacity to launch satellites into orbit and significantly reduce the country’s dependence on foreign expertise for satellite hosting and maintenance.
The global space economy is projected to exceed $1 trillion by 2040
