Aiming High

Ethiopia launches first satellite in a bid to modernize its economy

By Kiram Tadesse

East Africa's only space observatory facility at the Entoto Observatory and Research
Center north of Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa (Photo: ANTENEH AKLILU)

Ethiopia took its first step into space on December 20 last year with the launch of its first
satellite. The eagerly awaited launch of the 70-kg multi-spectral remote sensing
satellite, known as ET-RSS1, took place in the Taiyuan Satellite Launching Center in
Shanxi Province, 500 km away from China's capital Beijing. A command and control
center has been set up at the Entoto Observatory and Research Center, East Africa's
only space observatory facility, in the northern part of Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa.
Ethiopia's Ministry of Innovation and Technology said 21 Ethiopian scientists, of whom
five are women, co-developed the satellite built in China.

Announcement of the launch was made in November 2019 by the Ministry of Innovation
and Technology and the Ethiopian Space Science Technology Institute (ESSTI).
However, the significance of the launch was first portrayed as high-level government
business by Ethiopia's President Sahle-Work Zewde. She first mentioned the satellite
while addressing the new parliamentary joint session of the House of People's
Representatives and the House of Federation in early October 2019. Zewde told the two
houses that the Ethiopian Government envisages the maiden satellite, once it
commences its operations, would help the country modernize its agricultural sector.

"The satellite will provide all the necessary data on changes in climate and weather-
related phenomena that would be utilized for the country's key targets in agriculture,
forestry, as well as natural resources protection initiatives," said Zewde.

In April 2019, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, who is a technology enthusiast himself,
visited the China Academy of Space Technology to inspect ET-RSS1 during his stay in
China when he attended the Second Belt and Road Forum for International
Cooperation.
According to the Ethiopian Government, the entire project of the satellite and launch
cost $8 million, of which the Chinese Government provided $6 million. Ethiopian
Minister of Innovation and Technology Getahun Mekuria said the Ethiopian space
engineers, who are now deployed to play a key part in operating ET-RSS1, have been
trained both in China and at home, by experienced Chinese personnel.

Searching for accuracy

ET-RSS1, now hovering on its orbit at 700 km above the Earth's surface, was carried by
China-made Long March 4D rocket. Fitted with a high-resolution camera, the satellite
has multi-faceted purposes to modernize different sectors of the country.

The main purpose of this satellite is for the monitoring of agriculture, water, climate,
environment and mining, said Solomon Belay, Director General of ESSTI, adding that
the satellite was also "built for the purpose of training our engineers from scratch, as
well as the exchange and transfer of knowledge and technology." He stated the project
also helped establish strong collaboration between Ethiopia and China.

During a launching ceremony at Entoto Observatory and Research Center broadcast

live, State Minister of Innovation and Technology Ahmedin Mohammed said, "The
satellite will help Ethiopia to transform from estimation to certainty, from borrowed
information to ownership and from being a mere observer to practitioner, which will help
the country's development." According to him, with this satellite, Ethiopia became one of
the 70 countries in the world that operate a satellite.

"ET-RSS1 will help Ethiopia own reliable information to compete at international level
and realize its development journey," said Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed in his
congratulatory message following the launch. Ahmed pointed out that Ethiopia used to
buy images from other countries, but this satellite will help directly collect information
about its border activities, gather weather information and modernize its agriculture.

Deputy Prime Minister Demeke Mekonnen, who hailed the launch as a historical
moment for Ethiopia's journey to prosperity, said, "It is an indication that Ethiopia needs
to join the rest of the world at a rapid pace." Mekonnen also called for strengthening
technology development and international competitiveness.

With this project, the Ethiopian Government is hoping to save $11 million around
annually, which it currently spends to receive information from satellites owned by other
countries, according to Mekuria. "In addition to saving the foreign currency outflow to
purchase data, we can also earn foreign currency by rendering services to surrounding
countries," he said.

A few days after the launch, the ESSTI announced that eight African countries
requested to buy imagery rendered by ET-RSS1. The institute's general director Belay
said Ethiopia will commence the transaction in accordance to its own procedure.

Growing ambitions

Ethiopia is among a number of African countries with growing space ambitions to

advance their development goals and encourage scientific innovation. The launch
makes it the 11th country on the continent to put a satellite into the space.

The African Union also adopted the African Space Policy in 2017, which declared space
science and technology could advance economic progress and natural resource
management on the continent.

After 10 years of the Ethiopian Space Science Society (ESSS) aspiring to put an
Ethiopian satellite into the space, the government approved the establishment of the
ESSTI in October 2016. Following its official establishment, the ESSTI announced the
nation's ambition to launch an earth observatory satellite into orbit in less than five years
to improve its weather-monitoring capabilities.

The ESSS, which has hired over 10,000 members since being launched in 2004,
achieved the milestone of establishing East Africa's only space observatory facility on
the 3,200 meter high mountains of Entoto.

Currently, the Ethiopian Government has more lofty ambitions, and is planning to install
a satellite manufacturing, assembly, integration and testing (MAIT) facility this year.
"The next step is to launch a communication satellite and also set up a space material
assembly and manufacturing facility in Ethiopia," said Mohammed, confirming the
completion of a feasibility study for both projects.

"Information-based digitization in the coming decades will not only transform the socio-
economic condition of the world, but also monopolize it," he said.

The move signals the start of the second phase of Ethiopia's space development
strategy, which focuses on the design, development and manufacturing of highly
accurate, precise, portable, easily maintainable, replaceable and automated MAIT
equipment that may not only be used for aerospace industry, but also other
manufacturing industries.

As the ESSTI notes, the ET-RSS1 satellite project would have major significance to
similar upcoming projects. Prime Minister Ahmed also gave the assurance that Ethiopia
will continue to produce and launch additional satellites. The Ministry of Innovation and
Technology expects more future projects in different aspects, such as a
communications satellite, high-resolution remote sensing satellite, global navigation
satellite system and deep space exploration.

Research and Development Director of ESSTI Yilkal Chane hopes that the knowledge
transfer and training that accompanied the recent launch would help the country in
upcoming projects. "Professionals from the institute have traveled to China three times
to participate in training, which was divided into space segment and ground segment
sessions. They also participated in the satellite's final design," he said.

Chane noted that this project was an ice breaker that will contribute to the upcoming
similar projects. Officials also say cooperation experience with China could be shared
with other African countries.

Once completed, the Ethiopian MAIT facility will become one of the three MAIT facilities
in Africa, with two already in use in Algeria and South Africa. According to the online
publication Space in Africa, both Egypt and Nigeria are also planning to build their own
MAIT facilities.

This Article was first published on ChinAfrica on February 2020.