O Zimbabwe today joined the club of African States with satellites in space, announcing the sending of the first device in its history.
The satellite is a small block the size of a shoebox that will photograph the Earth and collect data.
"History is on the way. #ZimSat1 is in space!", wrote on the social network Twitter the spokesman of the Government, Nick Mangwana, who hailed the feat as "an important scientific step for the country".
A rocket departed at 10:32 GMT in Virginia, United States of America, a cargo bound for the International Space Station (ISS, its acronym in English), carrying on board three CubeSats developed by Zimbabwe, Uganda and Japan, confirmed NASA .
History unfolding.#ZimSat1 now space bound! pic.twitter.com/NX2gEGhPt6
— Nick Mangwana (@nickmangwana) November 7, 2022
"Satellites will photograph Earth to collect climate and disaster monitoring data“, said the US space agency also on Twitter, in a message with a photo of the small technology centers, each decorated with the respective national flag.
The collected images will also make it possible to distinguish non-wooded soil and agricultural land and can be used “to improve the livelihoods of citizens of Uganda and Zimbabwe", also announced the US space agency NASA in a statement.
Zimbabwe has been working on the project since 2018, less than a year after President Emmerson Mnangagwa took office, who succeeded Robert Mugabe and created the Zimbabwe National Geospatial and Space Agency (Zingsa).
In this country stricken by poverty and with a weakened economy, the announcement of the launch of a satellite into orbit provoked strong reactions on social networks.
The cost of the project was not disclosed.
"Launching a satellite when the economy is weak is stupid. Poverty has increased in the last five years. You can't buy a car when your family is starving“, wrote on social networks someone who signs as @patriot263.
Zimbabwe has been in a deep economic crisis for 20 years and continues to be the target of international sanctions.
In September, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) announced new downward growth forecasts, in particular due to the drop in agricultural production.
