Fostering Global Collaboration: Mura Hosts Pan-African Space Showcase

Mura was recently honoured to host an international delegation for the Pan-African Space Showcase, organised by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and Plane Talking. Our portion of the tour was generously hosted at the world-class Petrawell manufacturing facility in Somerset West, Cape Town. The Showcase marks a significant milestone for the region.

The FCDO Space Showcase brought together high-level industry representatives from the UK, Kenya, and Nigeria to tour the Western Cape space cluster. The delegation visited leading university space research labs, SANSA's Hermanus facilities as well as various leading, innovative commercial space companies, allowing stakeholders to witness local capabilities firsthand while exploring opportunities for international collaboration.

We were privileged to welcome key representatives from the South African Space Agency (SANSA), the Department of Science, Technology & Innovation, Kenya Space Agency, NASRDA, the African Space Leadership Institute and Seraphim Space Investment Trust (SSIT).

Joined by Directors from the Aerospace Systems Research Institute (ASRI) and the Petrawell leadership teams, delegates were given rare, behind-the-scenes insight into the nascent South African sovereign and commercial launch development programme.

Strengthening UK-Africa Partnerships

The event highlighted the immense potential for international cooperation in the sector. As Loice Alusala, Science and Technology Network Officer at the British High Commission, Pretoria, noted:

“Harnessed sustainably, space can be a game changer for the African continent. With the UK’s long history and expertise in this area, these engagements with industry, government and academia show there are real opportunities for knowledge exchange and collaboration between the UK and African nations - particularly South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria.“

A Vision for the "World’s Launch Pad"

For Mura, this was a proud moment to introduce our launch-enabled value chain investment focus, as well as our flagship Mura Spaceport™ initiative. We presented on our roadmap for the region to deepen its connection to global markets across MTCR signatory countries through the establishment of a commercial launch industry and commercial launch-enablement on African soil.

Frederik de Ridder, CEO and Co-Founder of Mura Space, shared his vision for the future of the region:

“We shared what we believe is an achievable, practical flight path for the region to become the 'world’s launch pad'. Mura Spaceport™ is not only a vision for a multi-user orbital launch facility in a single locality or necessarily in a single country, but rather a network of infrastructures connecting launchers, space companies, spaceports and value chains locally, regionally and globally. For hundreds of years the region has been a critical trading node connecting North, South, East and West in the maritime domain; we are excited about the prospect of leveraging southern Africa’s unique geography and quiet skies to centre it once again in the next chapter of humanity’s endeavour to explore and harness the cosmos for societal advancement and global development.”

We look forward to continuing these vital conversations and working together to advance the African space landscape.