NASRDA’s Strategic Engagement at ISRO Headquarters Strengthens Nigeria-India Space Ties
The Director-General of the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA), Dr Matthew Adepoju, led an official delegation to the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) headquarters in Bengaluru to consolidate the existing bilateral Memorandum of Understanding on the peaceful uses of outer space and to expand the scope of cooperation into critical domains of capacity development, research collaboration, and sustainable socio-economic applications of space technology.
The NASRDA delegation comprised Dr Godstime Kadiri James (Director, Strategic Space Applications), Dr David Jeb Nyomo (Director, National Centre for Remote Sensing, Jos), and Dr Chichebe Akachukwu (Director, Ground Station and Mission Control).
Key Engagement Outcomes
- Academic and Research Collaboration: A preliminary understanding has been established with the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Thiruvananthapuram, to strengthen student and faculty exchanges, joint research programmes, curriculum enhancement in advanced space technologies, and the co-organisation of thematic workshops and conferences.
- Applications and Data Utilisation: Structured engagement with ISRO’s Earth Observation Programme Office to operationalise EO and Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) applications in priority sectors, including precision agriculture, environmental monitoring, disaster preparedness, and national security.
- Human Capital and Skills Development: Review of progress under the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) framework, under which 25 NASRDA officers were trained in January 2025 on satellite image analysis and SAR processing. Furthermore, an agreement was reached to scale specialised training pathways to address targeted capacity gaps across Nigeria’s space ecosystem.
The engagements reaffirm the strategic relevance of space cooperation in advancing national development priorities, with outcomes explicitly aligned to Nigeria’s broader policy objectives on food security, climate resilience, national security, and evidence-based governance. Therefore, by anchoring bilateral collaboration within the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the visit reinforces Nigeria’s commitment to leveraging international partnerships to strengthen endogenous capabilities and positioning the national space programme as a driver of socio-economic transformation.