Uganda Space Program - Modern Developments

Modern Developments

At the September 1996 Conference on Small Satellites: Missions and Technology in Madrid, Spain, informal proposals were raised for a Ugandan microsatellite project. At the Third United Nations Conference on the Exploration and Peaceful Uses of Outer Space held in Vienna July 1999, Semakula Kiwanuka said "space technology is a powerful tool for accelerating national development" and pointed out the benefits a space program would have for his country. There have also been proposals for space science to be introduced at Mbarara University of Science & Technology.

Space technology for a country like Uganda would be most relevant in the fields of environmental Earth observation satellites and communications. Uganda sent two representatives, Samuel Edward Sekunda of the Department of Meteorology and Yafesi Okia of Lands and Surveys, to the Regional Workshop on the Use of Space Technology for Outer Space Affairs organized by the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in July 2002. Joel Arumadri of the National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA) represented Uganda at the April 2004 Regional Workshop on the Use of Space Technology for Natural Resources Management, Environmental Monitoring and Disaster Management in Khartoum, Sudan.

The Department of Meteorology has been directly active in the communications use of space technology, running the Radio and Internet (RANET) program, which allows rural communities to access government internet forecasts through WorldSpace satellite radio.

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