Nigeria has signed a deal with British satellite maker Surrey Satellite Technology Limited (SSTL)to build a second space satellite, a government official said hereon Monday. Felix Ale, spokesman for Nigeria's Space Research and Development Agency, said the deal between Nigeria and SSTL is expected to culminate in the launch of Nigeria SAT 2 by 2008, an earth observation satellite which has a seven-year lifespan.

SAT 2 could be deployed to aid agricultural and economic planning as well as help in disaster management, he said.

The Nigerian government has stressed the importance of investment in space technology for effective planning to deal with development problems.

According to a statement from the space agency, Nigeria hopes to expand its uses of space technology to include contributing to the management of its agricultural, water and human resources through use of satellite mapping when the second satellite is deployed.

SSTL also constructed Nigeria Sat-1, which was launched in 2003and has a five-year lifespan.

Source: Xinhua News Agency