The South African Inter Ministerial Committee (IMC) on the Square Kilometre Array met in Cape Town today, 11 November 2010. The IMC was established following a Cabinet decision on 21 October 2009. South Africa is leading the African bid to host the world’s most powerful radio telescope known as the Square Kilometre Array. Winning this mega astronomy infrastructure project bid is expected to result in investment in Africa of approximately €200 million per annum over a 20-30 period for operations and maintenance.
The South African SKA IMC will provide strategic direction for the project on the following matters: local and international lobbying, site preparation in all the SKA partner countries, including regulatory and legal matters, and resolving high-level challenges as the bidding process approaches the final stages.
The meeting was attended by the following Ministers:
- The convenor and chairperson of the IMC, Minister of Science and Technology, Naledi Pandor
- Minister of Economic Development, Ebrahim Patel
- Minister of Public Enterprises, Malusi Gigaba
- Minister of State Security, Siyabonga Cwele
- Minister of Energy, Dipuo Peters
- Deputy Minister of Science and Technology, Derek Hanekom
- Deputy Minister of International Relations and Co-operation, Marius Fransman and
- Director-General of the Department of Science and Technology, Dr Phil Mjwara.
The Committee was briefed on the African bid for the Square Kilometre Array. In 2006 South Africa and Australia were shortlisted by the International Square Kilometre Array Steering Committee as the final contenders to host the SKA. A consortium of major international science funding agencies, in consultation with the SKA Science and Engineering Committee (SSEC), will announce the selected site for the SKA in 2012.
The SKA telescope will observe, capture and analyse radio signals from the immediate aftermath of the Big Bang. It will search for earth-like planets and potential for life elsewhere in the universe, test fundamental scientific theories such as the Einstein’s theory of gravity, and probe the dark energy of the universe.
The SKA bid was endorsed by the South African Cabinet in 2003 and is in line with the Government’s Astronomy Geographic Advantage Programme (AGAP), which aims to establish a hub of world-class astronomy facilities in Southern Africa. The SKA proposed site has also been declared a national key point by the South African government.
Enquiries:
Tommy Makhode
Chief Director: Science Communication
Tel: 012 843 6793
Cell: 082 379 8268
