On Friday evening, Senegal made history with the successful launch of its first satellite from California.
The launch makes the country one of just 12 African nations with their own surveillance and telecommunications satellites in space.
According to President Bassirou Diomaye Faye, the move marks a major step towards Senegal’s “technological sovereignty”.
Post on X, he said, "I would like to express my pride and gratitude to all those who made this project possible."
Maram Kaïré, director of Senegal's space agency, described the launch as “an important step and a historic day in our country's progress and determination to become a space-faring nation”.
GAINDESAT-1A was built by Senegalese engineers in collaboration with France’s Montpellier University Space Centre.
The nanosatellite was launched into orbit, together with 115 others, from the Vandenberg base in California using SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket.
It will be used to collect data for various state agencies including those dealing with water resources, civil aviation, and meteorology.
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