Insights

Foreign involvement in African space

Live data · as of Aug 4, 2026

A data-backed view of foreign involvement across satellites, ground stations, and collaborations.

African space programmes rarely operate alone. External countries partner on satellites, ground stations, and formal collaborations. The live table below ranks the most involved external countries across all three.

Top external countries by involvement

Country	Total	Satellites	Named partners
🇫🇷 France	29	14	Airbus Defence and Space, Arianespace, Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales, Centre for International Actions and Achievements, European Space Agency, Eutelsat, Expleo Group, RIDE Space, Thales Alenia Space, Université de Montpellier, Van Allen Foundation
🇩🇪 Germany	20	7	Berlin Space Technologies, European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites, ExoLaunch, University of Dresden
🇨🇳 China	19	10	China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology, China Academy of Space Technology, China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, China Great Wall Industry Corporation, China Satellite Communications, China Satellite Launch and Tracking Control General, DFH Satellite Company, Shenzhen Aerospace Oriental Red Sea Satellite Company
🇯🇵 Japan	18	8	Intelligent Space Systems Laboratory, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, Kyushu Institute of Technology, University of Tokyo
🇬🇧 GB	16	8	Bartington Instruments, DMC International Imaging, Eutelsat OneWeb, OU Centre for Electronic Imaging, Oxford Space Systems, RAL Space, Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Surrey Satellite Technology, UK Space Agency, University of Surrey, Wrexham University Centre for Solar Energy Research