This year marks the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC). It is also the inaugural year for implementing the outcomes of the 2024 Beijing Summit of FOCAC.

In keeping with this, the China-Africa Cooperation Center on Satellite Remote Sensing Application (CACSA) Week 2025 was recently held in Deqing county, east China's Zhejiang province, with the theme "Satellite Remote Sensing Application Cooperation, Empowering a New Future for China and Africa."

Wu Jun, deputy director general of the department of international cooperation, China's Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR), said, "Upholding the principles of strengthening cooperation through data sharing, breaking development bottlenecks through technology empowerment, and stimulating endogenous growth through talent cultivation, CACSA has become a vivid example of pragmatic China-Africa cooperation."

According to Wu, since its establishment in July 2023, CACSA has achieved fruitful results, aligning China's satellite remote sensing application technology with Africa's sustainable development needs.

In data sharing, the center has signed cooperation memorandums with the government departments of 16 African countries and the Regional Centre for Mapping of Resources for Development.

It has established 14 natural resources satellite remote sensing cloud service platform nodes, providing African partners free access to over 70,000 high-resolution remote sensing images, thereby offering robust spatial information support for the development planning of African nations.

The center has also developed a series of remote sensing products, atlases and software solutions in fields such as urban development, land use change and river basin monitoring.   

In talent cultivation, it has organized multiple symposiums, advanced seminars, and online data processing training programs, covering more than 400 participants from various African countries. In addition, it has trained over 10 African doctoral and master's students jointly with universities.

"As the theme of this year's CACSA Week reminds us, cooperation in satellite remote sensing applications is critical to empowering the future of China-Africa partnership," Samuel Abikunda, Rwanda's commercial counselor to China, said. "This gathering is not only a technical exchange but also a reaffirmation of our shared vision to harness science, technology and innovation for sustainable development and a better future for our peoples."

Speaking on the partnership, Joseph Bremang Tandoh, director of the Ghana Space Science and Technology Institute, said, "Our collaboration with China is more than a technological exchange—it is a partnership for development. By combining Ghana's national vision with China's proven expertise in space science, we are equipping our country with the tools to safeguard our resources, enhance food security, and build resilience for the future."

During the opening ceremony, MNR's Land Satellite Remote Sensing Application Center (LASAC) signed separate MoUs with the Geomatics Center of Burundi, the Cartographic Unit of Comoros, and the Gabonese Agency for Space Studies and Observations.

"The successful implementation of this cooperation agreement will not only reinforce the bonds of friendship between our two nations, but will also contribute meaningfully to the realization of Burundi's Vision 2024–2040," Ngendabakana Frederic, permanent executive secretariat of the Geomatics Center of Burundi, said. He added that the center was committed to implementing this cooperation partnership and fostering its success through sustained collaboration and mutual support.

The CACSA Week 2025 was jointly hosted by LASAC and the National Satellite Ocean Application Center.