Satellite engineers in Nigeria have asked the Federal Government to increase funding for space engineering.
The demand of the engineers was delivered by the Director General of the National Space Research and Development Technology (NSRDA), Professor Seidu Muhammed, on Friday.
The experts, who spoke at a media forum in Abuja, held to brainstorm on the role of the mass media in promoting space research development, also observed the need for journalists to set agenda for science development in Nigeria.
They said diversifying into space science was key to national economic development.
Alternative To Dwindling Oil Revenue
It was an event for journalists, space scientists and engineers and the keynote speaker, the head Media and Communications, NSRDA, Mr Felix Ale, emphasised the need for space research development agencies to partner with the media if they must develop.
One of the other experts at the event, a former Director General of the NSRDA, Professor Ajayi Boroffice, spoke on the need for the Nigerian government to invest in satellite engineering, as alternative to dwindling oil revenue.
Although several African countries including Nigeria have invested heavily in modern communication technologies including the Global System for Mobile Communication, no African country has an active communication satellite in outer space to power those investments.