Maram Kairé, internationally renowned astronomer and Director General of the Senegalese Space Agency, joins Seraphim’s Global Space Futures Advisory Council to help shape the future of the global space sector.
Seraphim Space is pleased to announce that Global Astronomy Expert and Senegalese Space Agency Director General, Maram Kairé is joining the Seraphim Global Space Futures Advisory Council, established this year on 15 April at the Space Symposium in Colorado Springs: https://seraphim.vc/news/seraphim-global-advisory-council-announcement/.
In accepting the invitation to join the Seraphim Global Space Futures Advisory Council, Maram Kairé remarked, ” Seraphim’s remarkable journey and leadership in building the global Space investment ecosystem over the last decade are truly inspiring. The breadth of your vision — spanning innovation, investment, geopolitics and long-term planetary impact — strongly resonates with the strategic ambitions we are currently advancing in Africa”.
“We are particularly enthusiastic about contributing an African perspective to the Council’s reflections on the future of space, geointelligence, resilience, sustainability and international cooperation”, noted Candace Johnson, Chair of the Seraphim Global Space Futures Advisory Council. “In addition, we believe that Maram’s expertise in astronomy, reflected by having coordinated three major NASA missions conducted to observe stellar occultations: the New Horizons mission, which flew past Pluto, and the Lucy space mission, which will visit a group of eight Trojan asteroids between 2025 and 2033, will greatly enhance the Council’s expertise in Space Exploration.
Please see below for full biography of Maram Kairé.
Biography of Maram Kairé
Director General of the Senegalese Agency for Space Studies (ASES)
Maram Kairé is a systems engineer, astronomer, entrepreneur, and senior public official from Senegal. Commander of the National Order of the Lion, Senegal’s highest distinction, he has served since March 2023 as the first Director General of the Senegalese Space Agency (ASES), the institution responsible for implementing the country’s national space vision and promoting the use of space technologies for economic development, social progress, and national sovereignty.
On May 14, 2021, he became the first Senegalese to have his name assigned to a Solar System object with the naming of asteroid (35462) Maramkaire by the International Astronomical Union (IAU). This international recognition crowned decades of dedication to the advancement of astronomy and space sciences in Africa.
His contributions have earned him numerous national and international distinctions. He has been listed among the “Top 500 Most Influential Africans in the World” by TROPICS Magazine and was named among “The 30 Who Are Shaping Africa Tomorrow” by JEUNE AFRIQUE in 2022. His awards include the Scientific Personality Award of the Calebasse de l’Excellence (2022), the Cauri d’Or Scientifique (2022), the Marcel MOYE Prize of the French Astronomical Society (2023)—making him the first African recipient of the award since its creation in 1942—and the Special Jury Prize of the Toulouse Space Forum (2024).
As co-founder and President of the Senegalese Association for the Promotion of Astronomy (ASPA), Maram Kairé has initiated numerous science outreach and astronomy education programs. Among them is SPACEBUS, considered the largest astronomy outreach initiative ever organized in Africa. Through these efforts, he has inspired thousands of young people and contributed to strengthening the role of astronomy and science education across the continent.
In March 2020, the International Astronomical Union appointed him National Astronomy Education Coordinator (NAEC) for Senegal, with responsibility for promoting astronomy within the national education system. He is also a founding member of the African Astronomical Society (AfAS) and serves on the Executive Committee of the Africa Initiative for Planetary and Space Sciences (AFIPS), an organization dedicated to advancing planetary and space sciences across Africa.
Between 2018 and 2021, he coordinated three major NASA scientific campaigns in Senegal dedicated to stellar occultation observations in support of the New Horizons and Lucy missions. These international campaigns brought together scientists from several countries and significantly enhanced Senegal’s visibility within the global space science community.
From 2015 to 2019, he served as Technical Advisor to Senegal’s Minister of Higher Education, Research and Innovation, with responsibility for science outreach and the promotion of scientific culture. In this role, he led strategic partnerships with CNES and ArianeGroup to support the development of Senegal’s first satellite, the establishment of university programs in space science, and the creation of a microsatellite Assembly, Integration and Testing (AIT) center in Senegal.
Alongside his public service, he serves as Chief Executive Officer of AFRICASPACE, a company that provides strategic advisory services to African governments for the development and implementation of national space policies and programs. Through his scientific, educational, diplomatic, and institutional engagements, Maram Kairé works to position space as a driver of development, innovation, sovereignty, and sustainable transformation for Africa.
