Nicaragua creates ‘Ministry of Extraterrestrial Space Affairs, The Moon and Other Celestial Bodies’
- Ministry to be under control of Nicaraguan army, which has no space programme
- Critics said country does not have money to spare for dreams of space exploration
Nicaragua has created a new National Ministry for Extraterrestrial Space Affairs, The Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, which is drawing amused reactions on social media in a nation that has been struggling since anti-government protests three years ago.
The agency was approved by 76 legislators Wednesday in the country’s Congress, which is dominated by President Daniel Ortega’s Sandinista Party. Fifteen opposition legislators abstained.
In a country that has a hard time supplying its people with food, fuel and coronavirus vaccines, it is not clear exactly what the ministry is supposed to do.
It will be under the control of the Nicaraguan army, which has no space programme. The law says the ministry “will promote the development of space activities, with the aim of broadening the country’s capacities in the fields of education, industry, science and technology.”
01:44
Kindergarten in Colombia turns coronavirus precautions into ‘space adventures’ for pupils
Geologist Jaime Incer Barquero, president of Nicaragua’s Academy of Geography and History, told CNN: “Nicaragua does not have a scientific capacity or tradition, does not have a serious (space) observatory. We are not scientifically able as a country to undertake this type of research.”