Towards the end of 2020, the space agencies of the International Space Exploration Coordination Group (ISECG) welcomed the Mexican Space Agency (AEM) and the Portuguese Space Agency (Portugal Space) as new members of ISECG. As of now, the membership of ISECG comprises 26 organisations.
“We are pleased to welcome our two new members from Mexico and Portugal. ISECG has continued to grow substantially over the past three years. Space agencies consider the work of ISECG meaningful and something that supports their own national priorities. We look forward to working with our new colleagues”, said Dr. Christian Lange, the Head of Exploration Strategic Planning at the Canadian Space Agency, who is the current chair of the ISECG. “The accession of several new organisations demonstrates the willingness of agencies to engage in focused international strategic exchange and coordination, and to build new strategic partnerships for advancing the implementation of the Global Exploration Strategy.”
The new members expressed their interest and expectations about their engagement in ISECG:
Mexican Space Agency (AEM)
The AEM has three priority objectives: i) identify the perspectives and promote the development of space infrastructure for telecommunications, navigation, global positioning, and their applications; ii) the development of a comprehensive program of national scope for Earth observation; iii) increase capacities and promote cooperation in science and technology in space exploration, for the scientific and technological strengthening of the country.
More information about AEM can be found at https://www.gob.mx/aem
Portugal Space (PTS)
As the first contributor to the outset of globalisation, Portugal is proud of being accepted as a member of ISECG, which represents new and stimulating perspectives to international cooperation in the field of space exploration. The Portuguese Space Agency, established in 2019 to promote and strengthen space activities in Portugal, for the benefit of society and economy in the country and worldwide, sees this membership as a great opportunity to deepen its commitment in the field of space exploration aiming to strengthen acquired competencies and promote international scientific cooperation, which is to be complemented with the strengthening of the scientific “mining” of exploration activities.
More information about PTS can be found at https://ptspace.pt/