Prof. Paul Baki is a professor of Physics at the Technical University of Kenya, the Hon. Secretary, a Fellow and a member of the Governing Council of the Kenya National Academy of Sciences. He is a member of the International Astronomical Union (IAU), the Physics Society of Kenya, and the East African Astronomical Society, among others.
Professor Baki is the Principal Investigator of TUK Sat1 Nanosatellite Development for Environmental and Security surveillance over Lake Victoria. He is a member of the United Nations Committee on Peaceful Uses of Outer Space(UNCOPUOS) Expert Group C: Long Term Sustainability of Outer Space Activities and works towards developing space policies in space weather and sustainability of outer space activities at technical and scientific committees. He is also part of NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) project.
Furthermore, Professor Baki is a member of the African Union Working Group on Space Policy & Space Strategy and contributed to developing the African Space Strategy and Space Strategy and statutes. Now, he is helping the African Union Commission with the development of the organisational structure of the African Space Agency.
Prof. Baki has made tremendous contributions to Kenya’s space, education and research policies. He chaired the Committee on Kenya Space Policy in 2014. In 2020, Professor Baki was part of the Special Committee on the Development of a Road Map on University Education, Research and Innovation. He was the chairman of the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology in 2017 and the Science, Technology and Innovation Sector Working Group on Medium Term Plan from 2018 to 2022. In addition, he led the Kenyan Inter-ministerial Technical Committee on the Square Kilometre Array in 2017.
Professor Baki has published over 60 peer-reviewed papers and supervised many Masters and PhD students in space physics and astrophysics.