왜 아프리카 국가는 위성을 개발하는가?: 위성 획득에 미치는 요인에 대한 실증분석

초록

In the New Space era, many developing countries are venturing into outer space to create social, economic, and military-security value. African countries are also participating in this global trend. However, a significant number of African countries have yet to develop and deploy satellites. Despite this, several countries are actively engaging in space development and leading Africa’s space activities. Notably, some nations have succeeded in developing satellites even amid domestic economic instability and low levels of technological capacity. Why, then, do certain African countries invest in the costly process of developing satellites? This study examines the factors affecting satellite acquisition among African countries through empirical analyses. To explain the variation in satellite acquisition across African countries, the paper suggests three explanatory variables: social, military-security, and institutional factors. The results show that the frequency of natural disasters as a social factor and the presence of a dedicated national space agency as an institutional factor have statistically significant and positive effects on satellite acquisition. In contrast, no significant relationship is found between the military power of neighboring countries as a military-security factor and satellite acquisition. This research has both academic and policy implications in that it empirically examines the factors that affect satellite acquisition in Africa through a newly constructed panel dataset and suggests potential approaches to space cooperation with African countries.

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