At the first-ever US-Africa Space Forum, Nigeria and Rwanda became the first African nations to sign the Artemis Accords. Participants in the Forum, which was part of the US-Africa Leaders’ Summit, discussed how to further shared goals through the peaceful exploration and use of outer space.
The Artemis Accords represent a bold, multilateral vision for the future of space exploration. Launched by the State Department and NASA together with eight nations in 2020, the Artemis Accords advance bilateral and multilateral space cooperation between signatories, expanding our knowledge of the universe and benefiting the whole world.
According to a release from the US Department of State, the Accords were signed by Minister of Communications and Digital Economy Isa Ali Ibrahim on behalf of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and by Rwanda Space Agency CEO, Francis Ngabo, on behalf of the Republic of Rwanda. President Paul Kagame of Rwanda, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, Assistant Secretary for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs Monica Medina, and US National Space Council Executive Secretary, Chirag Parikh, gave remarks at the event.
Signatories commit to principles to guide their civil space activities, including the public release of scientific data, responsible debris mitigation, registration of space objects, and the establishment and implementation of interoperability standards.
The Accords now vaunts 23 signatories, spanning every corner of the globe and representing a diverse set of space interests and capabilities. Through signing the Artemis Accords, Australia, Bahrain, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, France, Israel, Italy, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Luxembourg, Mexico, New Zealand, Nigeria, Poland, Romania, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States have demonstrated their commitment to the peaceful, responsible, and sustainable use of outer space, leading the global conversation on the future of space exploration.
