NAIROBI, Kenya — Kenya will host the inaugural ActInSpace Kenya Chapter on January 30–31, 2026, in a move aimed at strengthening the country’s space innovation ecosystem and expanding the use of space-derived technologies in socio-economic development.
The hackathon will be hosted by the Kenya Space Agency (KSA) in partnership with Expertise France (EF) under the Data Governance in Africa Initiative.
It will take place at the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) and marks Kenya’s first participation in the global ActInSpace programme.
ActInSpace is an international innovation hackathon initiated by the French Space Agency, Centre National d’Études Spatiales (CNES), and has been held annually since 2014.
It is co-organised with the European Space Agency (ESA), Telecom Valley, and the SAFE Cluster, bringing together innovators worldwide to develop solutions powered by space technologies.
According to KSA, the initiative is designed to leverage space-based services, applications, and data to stimulate innovation, entrepreneurship, and technology transfer.
The agency said the hackathon will focus on translating space science into practical, market-ready solutions that address real-world challenges across sectors such as agriculture, climate resilience, transport, urban planning, and disaster management.
“Through ActInSpace, young innovators are empowered to turn bold ideas into viable products that solve pressing societal problems,” the agency said in a statement.
The Kenya chapter will bring together pre-selected university teams drawn from across the country.
The teams were competitively selected through a rigorous assessment process and will participate in a 24-hour global hackathon alongside peers from other participating countries.
During the event, teams will receive mentorship from business coaches, space industry professionals, and technical experts.
They will then pitch their solutions to a panel of judges drawn from the innovation, technology, and space sectors.
The top-ranked team will earn the opportunity to travel to Bordeaux, France, to represent Kenya at the global ActInSpace finale.
Other high-performing teams will benefit from continued mentorship, startup coaching, and technical guidance aimed at refining their ideas into minimum viable products.
KSA said it intends to host ActInSpace Kenya annually as part of its broader strategy to nurture the country’s emerging space economy.
The agency views innovation challenges and youth-driven research as critical to building national space capacity and enhancing the utilisation of space-derived data and services.
The hackathon is supported by the Data Governance in Africa Initiative, which is funded by the European Union and five EU Member States—Belgium, Estonia, Finland, France, and Germany—and implemented in collaboration with the African Union.
As Kenya positions itself as a regional hub for space innovation, KSA said programmes such as ActInSpace will play a central role in bridging the gap between research, entrepreneurship and public-interest applications of space science.
