China to host first space cooperation forum with Latin America, Caribbean

China will host the inaugural China-Latin America and the Caribbean Space Cooperation Forum next week in Wuhan, Hubei province, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) announced on Wednesday.

The two-day forum, co-organized by the CNSA, the Foreign Ministry, and the Hubei provincial government, will open on April 24, China's Space Day. It will feature an opening ceremony, a main forum, and four symposiums, according to Lyu Bo, a CNSA official, who spoke at a news conference at the agency's headquarters.

The main forum will focus on the impact of space cooperation on socioeconomic development. The four symposiums will cover topics including deep-space exploration, space science, and fostering innovation-driven growth within the space industry chain, Lyu said.

Nearly 100 representatives from 26 Latin American and Caribbean countries, along with eight international organizations, are expected to attend the forum.

Lyu said the event aims to promote space cooperation between China and these regions, support aerospace development in Latin America and the Caribbean, deepen friendship between China and participating countries, and contribute to building a shared future for China and the region.

The forum will coincide with a series of activities planned in Wuhan next week to celebrate China's ninth Space Day. The annual observance commemorates the launch of China's first satellite, Dongfanghong 1, aboard a Long March 1 carrier rocket on April 24, 1970. This mission made China the fifth nation capable of launching its own spacecraft into Earth orbit.