NASA Welcomes Côte d’Ivoire as Newest Artemis Accords Signatory

Côte d’Ivoire signed the Artemis Accords on Thursday, becoming the 75th signatory and marking what NASA calls a major milestone for the growing coalition. The nation's Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Adama Diawara, signed on behalf of the country at a ceremony in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire's largest city, held during the Africa Space Expo ASPEX 2026. Chargé d’affaires Junaid Munir of the U.S. Department of State witnessed the ceremony.

NASA Deputy Administrator Matt Anderson framed the signing as an expansion of existing ties: the United States and Côte d’Ivoire already cooperate on Earth, and the Accords extend that partnership beyond it, opening opportunities for scientists, engineers, and institutions to work together as humanity returns to the Moon and prepares for what comes next. Director General of the Space Agency of Côte d’Ivoire Tidiane Outtara called it a great achievement for his country's ambitions and for the rest of the African Union members.

Côte d’Ivoire has built up its space involvement through years of international cooperation. Since 2019, the National Office of Technical Development of Côte d’Ivoire and NASA have collaborated on Earth observation and geodesy — the field that measures Earth's shape, gravity, and movement. Together they have advanced global geodetic networks, improved space-based measurement techniques, and increased understanding of how Earth's systems interact. In 2025 the country established the Space Agency of Côte d’Ivoire to coordinate national efforts in Earth observation, space weather, astronomy, satellite navigation, and communications.

The Artemis Accords themselves were established in 2020, when NASA and the State Department joined with seven other founding nations in response to growing government and private interest in lunar activity. They are described as the first set of practical principles aimed at enhancing transparency, safety, and coordination among exploring nations, committing signatories to explore peaceably and transparently, render aid to those in need, enable access to scientific data, avoid interfering with others' activities, and preserve historically significant sites and artifacts through best practices. By signing, nations open the door to future lunar exploration opportunities with NASA — advancing humanity's return to the Moon and, in NASA's framing, shaping a Golden Age of exploration and innovation.