Scientist Marie Makuate wants more African countries to have their own satellites orbiting Earth
Cameroonian scientist Marie Makuate has been at the forefront of using information harvested by satellites to help save the lives of people on Earth in emergencies, but she argues the expense of the data should spur more African countries to launch their own space hardware.
Some satellite companies do offer free imaging for disaster-relief purposes, but help is often limited in scope and time.
Morocco does have its own satellites, but Ms Makuate makes the case that more African countries should be sending them into space and make their output more freely available.
"If a country has its own satellite, it doesn't have to pay for the images," says the young scientist.
Satellite images can cost up to $25 per square kilometre - getting high-definition photographs of an area the size of Lagos, for example, would cost more than $80,000.
Ms Makuate has been making her case for more pan-African collaboration in front of a group of industry specialists that came together this week in Angola's capital, Luanda, for the NewSpace Africa Conference.
There is huge potential in the African space sector - it is expected to be worth more than $20bn by 2026, according to consultancy firm Space in Africa.
"If I can map very precisely and in quantified ways important sectors of the country, I can then relay this [data] to the government so they can reach better decision-making," says Dr João.South Africa and Egypt are the African countries with the highest number of satellites in orbit - both with 13 each - according to consultancy firm Spacehubs Africa.
South Africa uses its satellites to monitor the impact of mining activities as well as help provide consistent internet and telephone coverage, according to Ms Makuate.
She wants to create the next generation of experts who can analyse satellite imagery, who she hopes will be able to work with data generated by equipment sent into space by African governments.