The West European space programme has launched a communications satellite for Africa from its launch site in Korou, in French Guyana.
The Afristar satellitewill be positioned over the Democratic Republic of Congo and used by an American communications company to provide digital radio transmissions of programmes, pictures and text to a new generation of satellite radio receivers in Africa and the Middle East.
A second satellite launched at the same time will boost television and telecommunications coverage in the United States.
From the newsroom of the BBC World Service