iu 2004
le food
1d rates
od and
of this
nments
of the
ce and
of food
cations,
vide a
- to be
onomic
lividual
'elevant
ition.
the UN
mation,
ng on
"uctures
ire that
tainable
her by
, 2003)
ling the
Lr SDI
actively
'eodetic
ries are
ference
) entails
that is
pted to
require
tor, the
Ocean
ng and
ria has
31 in its
f space
tructure
jents in
lational
of any
or the
] space.
tes play
ation, in
red for
International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, Vol XXXV , Part B4. Istanbul 2004
2.1. Nigerian National Space Policy and Programmes
Within the framework of the foregoing objectives and to meet
the sustainable development challenges and Nigeria's aspiration
to utilize space assets for the improvement of the quality of life
of its people, the Government of Nigeria approved a National
Space Policy and Programmes and the establishment of a
National Space Research and Development Agency
(NASRDA). NASRDA was mandated to conduct appropriate
research and development activities and also consolidate all
space science and technology-related activities to make a
greater impact on developmental efforts in Nigeria, particularly
in sectors of the economy such as transports, agriculture,
communication, education, cadastre and urban development,
rural health care delivery, solid mineral development, water
resources, defence and security, and protection of the
environment.
The set objectives and targets of the policy were to be realized
through the establishment and empowerment of six
implementation centers, vis: Centre for Basic Space Science,
National Centre for Remote Sensing, Centre for Satellite
Technology Development, Centre for Geodesy and
Geodynamics, Centre for Space Transport and Propulsion and
African Regional Centre for Space Science and Technology
Education. The mandates of these Centres and NASRDA's
administrative structure have been highlighted in another
publication (Akinyede, 2003).
2.2 Nigeria's Satellites Projects
2.2.1 NigeriaSat-1: The first Nigerian satellite, a micro-
satellite called NigeriaSat-1, was successfully launched into low
earth orbit on 27" September 2003. The choice of NigeriaSat-1
was influenced by its low cost, affordability and the advantage
of comparable performance to the expensive large satellites and
the possibility to support capacity building. Fifteen (15)
Nigerian engineers/scientists were trained in all aspects of
satellite technology including ground station management. To
date, NigeriaSat-1 has captured high quality images, using the
six cameras on board the satellite, and demonstrated good
commercial value. The launch has generated wide spread
national attention and stimulated countrywide space and GI
awareness, especially among stakeholders and users of satellite
data for GI acquisition for socio-economic activities in Nigeria.
Similarly, decision makers have shown a great interest and have
been highly optimistic about its application potentials. The fact
that data from NigeriaSat-1 is timely accessible and entirely
owned by Nigeria has stimulated research and development by
many relevant institutions of government and the private sectors
in Nigeria. Further benefits of the availability of real-time data
from NigeriaSat-1 include:
. Opportunity for sharing knowledge and solving the
problems of digital divide in Africa.
. Being configured in Disaster Monitoring Constellation
(DMC) with other satellites that belong to Algeria,
China, Turkey and U.K. gives it added advantage of
global coverage and daily revisit with provision of real-
time data.
° Ground sampling distance (GSD) or spatial resolution of
32m with an economic swath width of 600km; it has a
minimum of five years life span.
295
7?
° A camera-based system/technology with sensors in 3
spectral bands: green (0.52 -0.62m), red (0.63-0.69m)
and near intrared (0.76-.9m) with strong potential for
NDVI (Normalized Differential Vegetative Index),
which can be used for a variety of application and
inferences including desertification and famine early
warning and appropriate decision-making
° Great potential for broad spectrum of data acquisition
for the National Geospatial Data Infrastructure (NGDI),
an initiative for GI-based economy that will improve the
quality of life of Nigerians and alleviate poverty.
° Mutual benefits from the DMC satellites include daily
imaging capability with reduction in cloud problems and
increased commercial value, setting a new international
EO standard, and stimulating partner-nations-value-
added business and high public profile in terms of
international disaster support and out of world's first
coordinated EO satellite constellation.
e With the linkage of the other satellites in the DMC,
through Internet facility to permit sharing of data,
NigeriaSat-1 offers a great potential for disaster
management and monitoring such as oil spillage and
environmental degradation in the Nigerian Delta arca
and any other part of the world.
° Provides opportunity for an array of applications in
many areas of socio-economic development and
environmental management such as: oil pollution
monitoring, land use/cover dynamics, environmental
degradation in the Niger delta area,
drought/desertification studies, influence of
urbanization/urban sprawl on socio-economic activities,
water resources development, coastal/beach erosion
studies, etc.
Back-up programmes are also being planned and they include a
low-cost ground receiving station to capture data from satellites
other than NigeriaSat-1. Similarly, NigeriaSat-1 ground station
in Abuja will be up-graded to receive data from other relevant
satellites including the proposed ARM satellite (see section
2.2.3). The ground stations will be equipped with the state-of
the-art-facilitics for data reception, cataloguing, archiving and
data pre-processing. Apart from the fact that the ground
stations will facilitate speedy access to real-time data at
affordable cost, it creates opportunity for international co-
operation and capacity building with the training of Nigerian
engineers and scientists. A more detailed analysis of NigeriaSat-
1 application potentials has been well documented (see
Akinyede, 2004).
2.2.2. Nigerian Communication Satellite — NigcomSat-1:
Experience in some developing countries has shown how
satellite-based communication accelerated development.
Ineffective communication systems are usually one of the
greatest drawbacks to the socio- economic development of
developing countries. Consequently and as a follow-up to the
successful launch of NigeriaSat-1, the government of Nigeria
has approved the implementation of a Nigerian Communication
Satellite to be called NigcomSat-1. The project is intended to
provide the bandwidth requirement to address the telephony,
broadcasting and broadband needs of the country. Similarly,
the implementation of a functional Information Communication
Technology (ICT), as a driving force behind most development
