## 1 Introduction  
### Background  
Developing countries are faced with a plethora of challenges, including the provision of basic needs such as food, shelter, water and sanitation, health care, quality education, and a clean and healthy environment, exacerbated by exponentially growing populations, the prevalence of diseases, and a changing climate. In particular, Africa faces challenges such as rising populations, extreme poverty, the proliferation of diseases, conflicts, and food shortages, among others. Global efforts are underway to address some of the major challenges in Africa and the world, such as eradication of poverty, proper sanitation for all, education of women and children, sustainable forests and natural resources, increase agricultural productivity, etc. These are embedded in the Global Agenda, i.e., the United Nations (UN) 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and global policy mandates, such as Paris Agreement on Climate Change and Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction. In 2015, the African Heads of State and Government adopted the African Union (AU) Agenda 2063 [1] as the blueprint for future development of the continent, based on previous experiences and programs such as the Lagos Plan of Action [2], the Abuja Treaty and the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). AU-Agenda 2063 outlines seven (7) aspirations, 20 goals and 140 indicators for Africa's sustainable development. The First-Ten-Years Implementation Plan (FTYIP) sets targets for the first ten years of implementation (i.e., 2014-2023) and indicates alignment with UN-SDGs indicators in order to reduce the level of reporting by member states. Among the many challenges facing Africa, the eradication of poverty (reducing unemployment rate) and hunger (doubling agricultural production), access to safe drinking water, health and infrastructure, and accelerating economic growth are some of the key foci of the AU-Agenda 2063. Achieving these requires a concerted effort (i.e., multi-sectoral partnerships), improvement of institutional and human capacities, alignment of national priorities to the AU-Agenda 2063 goals and targets, and timely and accurate information to support implementation, progress monitoring and reporting. Generally, Africa can be considered a data-scarce continent [3; 4; 5], with only a few member states being actively involved in consistent and systematic data collection activities through census and household surveys. These inarguably constitute the most detailed and accurate statistical information about the population and household well-being, critical for planning, allocation of resources, supporting national policy and decision-making related to the provision of health facilities, housing, and other amenities. However, due to the excessive cost of conducting such census and household surveys, scattered populations, security concerns, etc., most African countries are unable to provide accurate and reliable data at the required intervals and frequencies to support policy and decision-making. In addition, the effects of anthropogenic climate change on the environment are gradual, while disasters such as floods are too sudden to be surveyed by traditional methods. As a result, the lack of accurate and adequate information may result in loss of life, and deter the progress towards achievement of sustainable development and economic growth. Earth observation (EO) satellites have the capability to frequently collect data about the Earth, covering large areas, in sufficient detail and can overcome limitations of traditional surveys. Additionally, several tangible socioeconomic benefits of earth observation and geospatial technologies have been reported around the world. These include, among others, monitoring land use change, managing disease outbreaks, optimizing agricultural production, early warning and impact assessment of disasters such as floods, drought, and bushfires, tracking biodiversity trends and contributing to the sustainable management of agricultural, fresh water and energy resources [6].