The Director General of the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA), Matthew Adepoju, has explained why Nigeria’s satellites cannot provide real-time surveillance data to support the country’s security operations.
The DG offered the explanation when he featured on a Channels Television interview programme: “Politics Today,” on Friday.
Responding to concerns about Nigeria’s ability to track recent mass abductions in the North, he said there was a misconception about the role and limits of earth-observation satellites.
Adepoju said: “Sometimes there’s a misconception about what the satellites should do and what they have the capacity to do.
“The one that the military has, and the one we launched in the agency, are imagers.
“They don’t record videos.”
The NASRDA DG explained that Nigeria’s current satellites orbit the Earth and revisit the country only after several days.
Adepoju said: “They travel around the globe.
“For example, NigeriaSat-1 and NigeriaSat-2 take an average of three days before they come back here.
“If you want global coverage, we need to launch many satellites into orbit.
“As one is going, another should be coming.”
The DG said President Bola Tinubu had approved four new satellites, adding: “This constellation will reduce the time lag to four to six hours, depending on the orbital slot.
“But we plan to add more satellites so that we can achieve near-real-time capability.
“We don’t yet have real-time coverage.”
Asked how many satellites the country currently has, Adepoju confirmed that Nigeria currently operates only two active satellites.
The NASRDA DG said one was for communication and the other for earth observation.
Asked whether Nigeria has alternative surveillance tools, he said the agency had secured a partnership with a major US satellite operator.
He said: “Due to the problem we face, we reached out to technical partners in America.
“It took us 18 months to secure the necessary security clearance.”
He said the partner operates nearly 300 satellites that could provide Nigeria with advanced intelligence.
He added: “We have signed the MoU and the non-disclosure agreement.
“The only thing left is funding.
“It is a robust platform for signal analytics.
“We can even listen to some of the things terrorists are doing
“It breaks my heart when states shut down mobile communication.
“Most of these terrorists are not using mobile networks.
“They communicate through satellites, and I know that for a fact.”
When asked what Nigeria must do urgently, Adepoju called for a structural overhaul of security planning.
He said: “First and foremost, the national security architecture needs to be rejigged.
“An agency like ours must sit at the table when national security issues are discussed.
“When you are not present during critical decisions, the information you provide depends on the interpretation of whoever receives it.”
