GLEC2022: Opportunities of Space for Emerging Countries

The opportunities of space are an inspiration for people all over the world. The images of astronauts walking on the Moon, launching to the International Space Station, flying new commercial spacecraft, and images of our planet from Earth orbiting satellites equally inspire people in emerging countries as much as they excite us those in countries with a long history of space exploration.

This inspiration and more importantly, the opportunities to get involved in this exciting field in emerging countries is the topic of the Global Conference on Space for Emerging Countries (GLEC2022), organised by the International Astronautical Federation (IAF) and the Ecuadorian Sideralis Foundation. It is held in Quito, the capital of Ecuador, the second highest capital in the world, and due to its location on the equator, one of the places closest to space on Earth!

Awareness, opportunities and benefits of space

GLEC 2022 is second edition of this conference, held for the first time in Morocco in 2019. The objectives of the event include:

• Creating awareness on the essential legislative and policy elements that must be considered in establishing a firm foundation for national or regional space programs;
• Promoting the creation and development of a local space industry that is innovative, responsive, robust, commercially viable, and connected and integrated to the global space industry;
• Highlighting the socio-economic benefits of space applications so that high-level citizen support can be secured for advancing national or regional space programs.

GLEC 2022 will address various topics of interest for space developing and emerging nations and regions, with a specific focus on:

• Benefits of Space Technology and Applications to Socio-Economic Development
• Financial Models and Resourcing
• Technology and Skills Development
• Base Infrastructure Requirements
• Space Industry Development and Support
• Legal and Policy Development

The Conference programme is designed to bring together the international community, including senior representatives of the major space agencies, industry, governments, policy makers, academia and NGOs. These leaders in the field will converge in Quito, Ecuador, to present results, exchange ideas, debate roadmaps, and discuss the future opportunities provided by space activities to emerging nations.

Follow hashtag #GLEC2022 for live updates from this conference on social media this week.

Opportunities of Space Data

Most of the examples used to promote a developing space industry are related to upstream technology: developing and manufacturing launchers, satellites and payloads. However, the biggest commercial opportunities are not in hardware, but in space data. As was said during the opening speeches of the event earlier today, the most valuable commodity in the global economy is no longer oil. It is information and information is the biggest product of space today. Information about our planet through remote sensing satellites, information about our location through GNSS satellites and information into our homes and offices through communication satellites.

Groundstation.Space is present at this conference to hear about the requirements that emerging countries have for space data. These requirements will help space data companies develop products, services, and most importantly partnerships with local organisations and startups in emerging countries to bring the benefits of space data to all countries in the world.

EU Global Action on Space

One of the initiatives in the European space community that can help emerging countries with the development of a space data industry is the EU Global Action on Space.

The EU Global Action on Space is a new initiative of the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Defence Industry and Space (DG DEFIS) which aims to promote the EU Space Programme and its flagship components Copernicus, Galileo and EGNOS worldwide, as well as foster collaboration between the EU and global space and non-space sectors throughout the value chain.

The Global Action is made up of three main elements covering different needs and stakeholders, including business coaching, market intelligence, and events and outreach.

More Space Events

To see all relevant space data events and other events like GLEC2022 see our events section.