For years, anyone wanting to fly a drone professionally in Algeria did so without a formal certification pathway. That gap is now closing. The Centre for Industrial Technology Research (CRTI), through its subsidiary EPE CRTI SKY-TEC ENGINEERING SPA, has become the first accredited institution in Algeria authorized to train and certify drone pilots, a milestone that places the country firmly within Africa’s expanding unmanned aviation landscape.
The accreditation, issued by the National Centre for Unmanned Aircraft Systems (CNASPB), formalizes a national regulatory structure governing civil drone operations, including training, certification, and operational compliance across categories 1 and 2. Algeria’s Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Kamal Badari, described it as “a qualitative step towards strengthening national capabilities in drone technologies and keeping pace with the digital and technological transformations that our country is witnessing.”
CRTI Director Dr. Riad Badji said the certification follows years of technical and regulatory work aimed at establishing a structured ecosystem for drone use, stressing that drone operation is no longer informal and that any operator must now be trained, assessed, and certified under the new framework. Badari added that the achievement was the result of “continuous efforts and fruitful cooperation with the National Center for Airborne Drone Systems.”
The training programme is structured according to user profile, ranging from 8–10 days for amateur operators to up to two months for professional trainees following technical evaluation. The centre has developed dedicated infrastructure, including simulation facilities, classrooms, and field training zones, to support both theoretical and applied instruction. SKY-TEC ENGINEERING is now qualified to deliver these programmes to remote pilots serving economic institutions, public bodies, government departments, and individuals seeking professional drone competency.
The accreditation does not come in isolation. Algeria launched its first Master’s programme in drone control and jamming systems at the University of Houari Boumediene at the start of the 2025/2026 academic year, with an inaugural cohort of 30 students drawn from electronics, electrical engineering, telecommunications, and automation disciplines, graduates of which will be automatically recruited into CRTI and affiliated structures. Together, the two initiatives signal a deliberate national strategy to cultivate homegrown expertise across the drone sector’s civilian and defence dimensions.
The CRTI has made clear it does not intend to monopolise the space. Several higher education institutions are already pursuing the same accreditation, and the CRTI director has acknowledged that a single structure cannot meet national demand alone.
Officials say the initiative is expected to have significant economic implications, particularly in agriculture, where drones are increasingly deployed for precision farming, crop monitoring, and large-scale land management, aligning with broader food security strategies. Beyond agriculture, drones are transforming mining, infrastructure inspection, environmental monitoring, logistics, and emergency response, sectors in which Algeria has growing strategic interests.
Algeria’s move reflects a broader continental shift. South Africa remains one of Africa’s most developed drone markets, with Civil Aviation Authority-approved training academies producing licensed operators for commercial and industrial use, backed by one of the continent’s most comprehensive UAV regulatory frameworks. Rwanda has emerged as a continental leader in drone innovation, combining medical supply delivery operations with sustained investment in aviation training infrastructure. In West Africa, Nigeria has expanded drone training through institutions approved by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, driven by demand from the oil and gas, agriculture, and mapping sectors.
Across Africa, governments are increasingly recognising that acquiring drone technology is only half the equation, building the local talent to operate, maintain, and innovate around it is equally vital. For Algeria, the licensing of SKY-TEC ENGINEERING represents more than a regulatory box ticked. It marks the country’s ambition to anchor itself as a future hub for drone training, research, and technological development in North Africa, with a clear eye on the fast-growing global UAV industry.
By: Andrews Kwesi Yenoah