China launches Nigerian satellite

China is launching rockets for 30 countries
China has successfully launched a communications satellite for Nigeria.
The official Xinhua news agency says it is the first time that a foreign buyer has purchased both a Chinese satellite and its launching service.

The Nigerian Communication Satellite NIGCOMSAT-1 is expected to offer broadcasting, telecommunications and broadband internet services for Africa.

China beat 21 other bidders for the $311m contract to launch the satellite in 2004, Xinhua says.

The satellite, launched by a Long March 3-B rocket, is expected to reach its final position later this year and to remain in operation for 15 years.

The launch is being portrayed as part of a drive to enhance rural access to technology and the internet and boost Nigeria's and Africa's knowledge economy.

"It gives you bandwidth to enable you to communicate from point A to point B, from rural Africa to urban cities," Dr Bashir Gwandu, a member of the Satellite Launch Committee and a director at the Nigeria Communications Commission told the BBC's Focus on Africa.

Nigeria has been experiencing a communications revolution in recent years, says the BBC's Alex Last, and is one of the fastest growing mobile phone markets in Africa and the world.

Having a space programme is also symbolic of how Nigeria wants to be seen as a growing player on the world stage

Critics say the majority of the population live in poverty and the internet can be made redundant by the simple fact that electricity is sporadic at best.

The government should rather spend all this money on power, job creation and basic public services, they say.

Co-operation

This is the latest example of growing economic co-operation between China and Africa.

China is buying Africa raw materials and building infrastructure such as roads.

The launch represented "China's wish to cooperate with developing countries in the peaceful use of outer space and to promote a closer relationship between China and African countries," Xinhua says.

China is expanding its space programme and in 2003 became only the third country to launch a man into space.

This is one of 30 foreign satellites China has been commissioned to launch, Xinhua reports.

Nigeria already has a weather satellite launched in 2003 with Russian assistance.



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I was happy when i watched it yesterday because i saw it as a first step. My skeptism started when some people in the streets started acting as if is all and all to the point that I had to remind some people that it was 90% china and 10%naija and until we as a nation can send one to space in our land with (90 to 95)% Nigerian effort and probably 10% foreign assistance then we still have a long road to go. As I said earlier it is a first step and funny enough people are starting to see if they can do space technology as a career because of the economic impact. Other African nations are beginning to look into that ever since we had the last one. My only hope is that it sparks a revolution in the African continent especially west Africa and Nigeria in particular.

and yet Nigerians die like chicken on the roads,

This is great news.

@babasin, i don't think there's nowhere people don't die and u'r just overexagerrating. If people die like chicken in Nigeria i wonder about cameroun; Oh! i forgot, they don't have that much cars in cameroun compared to one state in Nigeria and still yet,

thats how much we suck. We need other countries launching sattelites for us. We used to build our roads now the Chinese are doing it. What next. We will be contracting out our government jobs to the chinese? They will be supplying us water and telephone service and repairing our military vechiles?

News like this makes me ashamed to be from Nigeria.

shango:

thats how much we suck. We need other countries launching sattelites for us. We used to build our roads now the Chinese are doing it. What next. We will be contracting out our government jobs to the chinese? They will be supplying us water and telephone service and repairing our military vechiles?

News like this makes me ashamed to be from Nigeria.

You can be ashamed to be a Nigerian - good for you - how many country in the whole world has a satellite in space talkless of building one themselves? U think say na to cook eba? Abi? Even some developed countries still source thier technology from other country so what is the big deal about China building a satellite for Nigeria? The problem with Nigerians is this, when you dont do anything, they shout that nothing is done, but when you do something, they still shout that it is not done well, so I wonder, how can you ever satisfy Nigerian?

I am angered by the fact that we as a people dont see anything good in what the government does.

I am angered by the fact that we as a people don't see anything good in what the government does.

Yes paying Chinese for launching sattelites but Nigerians do not have daily electricity and live in poverty. Nigerian government in action. Talk about misplaced priorities

shango:

Yes paying Chinese for launching sattelites but Nigerians do not have daily electricity and live in poverty. Nigerian government in action. Talk about misplaced priorities

Shango, my dear friend you are quite in order but you are wrong a little, I 've always known that we would learn a lot from dealing with china, this at least is a start.

shango:

thats how much we suck. We need other countries launching sattelites for us. We used to build our roads now the Chinese are doing it. What next. We will be contracting out our government jobs to the chinese? They will be supplying us water and telephone service and repairing our military vechiles?

News like this makes me ashamed to be from Nigeria.

If u are as traditional as ur name points out, u would know the adage that says. "Whenever a man wakes up that is his morning". If Nigeria starts today pray that it lasts. If it decides to start tommorrow, pray that it meets u in good health.

the same people criticising now will be the same people to use the facilities provided by the launch of the satellite - stupid and ungrateful.

shango:

thats how much we suck. We need other countries launching sattelites for us. We used to build our roads now the Chinese are doing it. What next. We will be contracting out our government jobs to the chinese? They will be supplying us water and telephone service and repairing our military vechiles?

News like this makes me ashamed to be from Nigeria.

The UK doesn't launch its own satellites. it uses the European Space Agency. I believe, in western Europe, only France and Germany launch their own satellites