Dr Valanathan (Val) Munsami is Deputy Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at the Saudi Space Commission. Prior to this, he was the CEO of the South African National Space Agency (SANSA) for five years, ending in February 2022. He was also a member of the South African Council for Space Affairs (SACSA). Much earlier, Dr Munsami worked in South Africa’s secretariat for the non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and managed the implementation of a suite of bilateral and multilateral science and technology agreements. He was involved in the development of South Africa’s National Space Strategy, National Space Policy, Multi-Wavelength Astronomy Strategy and the SKA Readiness Strategy for Africa. He chaired the African Union Space Working Group (AUSWG), which was tasked with the development of the African Space Policy and the African Space Strategy; facilitated the development of an Implementation Plan for the African Union Science, Technology and Innovation Strategy for Africa (STISA); and conceptualized the model for the Pan African Space Science University of the African Union. He is inducted as an academician of the International Academy of Astronautics (IAA) and sits on the Advisory Boards of the Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC) and ZASpace Inc. (the Space Industry Forum of South Africa). He is currently the Chancellor of the International Space University (ISU), Strasbourg, France and is Co-founder/Director of the African Space Leadership Institute (ASLI).
Etim Offiong is Co-founder of ASLI. He oversees the operations of the Institute and coordinates the training programmes organised by the Institute. He is also the host of ‘Policy Talks,’ a conversation series with African and global space leaders, where they discuss local and international space-related issues and how they impact on Africa. Etim participated in the drafting of the African Space Policy and Strategy which was adopted by African Heads of States in 2016, and led to the establishment of the African Space Agency (AfSA) in 2018. He also participated in the validation of the ECOWAS Space Science and Geomatics Strategy. Etim holds a BSc in Electronic and Electrical Engineering, from the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Nigeria; Masters in Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) and Related Applications, from Politecnico di Torino, Turin, Italy; Masters in International Science and Technology Policy, from George Washington University (GWU), Washington DC, USA; and a Certificate in Space Studies from the International Space University (ISU), Strasbourg, France.