TUA chief says space sector to drive youth entrepreneurship

Turkish Space Agency President Yusuf Kirac said on the sidelines of the 77th International Astronautical Congress that Ankara is positioning its youth entrepreneurship ecosystem to capture expanding opportunities in the aerospace sector. The space economy is growing at an annual rate of up to 9 percent, a pace that vastly outstrips the 3 percent growth recorded across the broader global economy, according to the agency head.

Lunar ambitions and strategic milestones

Kirac stated that Türkiye aims to become the ninth nation to reach the Moon using domestic capabilities, a goal that forms a central pillar of the country's National Space Program. He noted that the planned Somali spaceport will provide Türkiye with independent access to orbital launch capacity, while the recent deployment of a homegrown atomic clock for geostationary navigation satellites marks another technical milestone for the national program.

Call for young entrepreneurs

The TUA president emphasized that ongoing tests of new systems will elevate Türkiye's standing in the global space arena, urging greater efforts to attract young entrepreneurs into the sector. "Tests are still underway, but all these developments will elevate Türkiye to the next level, and we need to strive even harder, attracting more young entrepreneurs into the space race," Kirac said.

The 77th International Astronautical Congress brings together global space agencies and private sector representatives to discuss advancing technologies. The event convenes as Türkiye accelerates its National Space Program initiatives, including recent orbital missions by astronauts Alper Gezeravcı and Tuva Cihangir Atasever that demonstrated Ankara's expanding human spaceflight capabilities.