The genesis of our organisation traces back to the 1st United Nations (UN) Cartographic Conference held in 1963 in Nairobi, Kenya, where the concept of a Regional Cartographic Centre was first proposed. Subsequently, during the 8th Session of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) Conference of Ministers in 1964, Resolution 164 (VIII) was passed in Addis-Ababa, Ethiopia, calling for the establishment of Regional Centres for Training in Photogrammetry, Photo-Interpretation, and Airborne Geophysical Surveys.

In response to this call, the African Regional Institute for Geospatial Science and Technology (AFRIGIST), formerly known as the Regional Centre for Training in Aerospace Surveys (RECTAS), was founded in 1972. Operating under the auspices of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), AFRIGIST serves as an educational "one-stop" solution institution dedicated to training highly skilled professionals in geospatial information science and technology, along with its practical applications.

Situated within the campus of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria, AFRIGIST is a bilingual (English and French) inter-governmental joint institution for Africa. Holding full diplomatic status in the Federal Republic of Nigeria, membership is open to all African countries. Currently, our institute boasts a membership of eight (8) countries, including Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ghana, Mali, Niger, Nigeria (the host country), and Senegal. Additionally, we recently welcomed new member countries, namely Cote-d’Ivoire, Guinea-Bissau, and Liberia, as we continue to foster collaboration and advance geospatial science and technology across the African continent.

AFRIGIST Ile-Ife

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