Djibouti officially became the 72nd nation worldwide and the eighth African country to sign the Artemis Accords on Monday, September 14, 2026, joining the United States-led framework for the peaceful and transparent exploration of outer space.
The agreement was signed at NASA headquarters in Washington by Djibouti’s Ambassador to the United States, Mohamed Siad Douale, during a ceremony attended by NASA Deputy Administrator Matthew Anderson and Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Frank Garcia.
The multilateral framework, established by NASA and the U.S. State Department alongside seven founding nations in 2020, outlines practical principles to govern civil space activity, lunar exploration, and sustainable space missions. Djibouti’s accession builds on growing bilateral technical cooperation, following its participation in U.S.-supported regulatory space training in April 2026 and the successful launches of its first two satellites—Djibouti-1A and Djibouti-1B—from Vandenberg Space Force Base in 2023 and 2024.
The move underscores a broader effort across the African continent to expand national space capabilities, leverage satellite technology for resource management and Earth observation, and deepen international scientific partnerships.
AC/Sf/lb/abj/APA