Hon Deputy Speaker, hon members, fellow South Africans, good afternoon. Hon members, the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Technology, Minister Blade Nzimande, in September 2019 tabled the Convention Establishing the Square Kilometre Array, SKA, Observatory requesting Parliament to ratify the Convention in terms
of the requirements of Section 231(2) of the Constitution of the Republic.
After two and a half years of multilateral negotiations led by Italy, the text of the Convention establishing the Square Kilometre Array Observatory was agreed in May 2018 and signed on 12 March 2019 in Rome by South Africa, Australia, China, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal and the United Kingdom. The convention seeks to establish the SKA Observatory, which will be a governance structure established under international law that will be responsible for constructing and operating the SKA Radio Telescope, which is a huge global scientific project in Astronomy.
The Convention does not set out any details relating to the policies and rules of the SKA Observatory, it also does not stipulate the financial obligations of members, but rather, establishes the mechanism that will govern how these decisions are made. The policies, rules and financial obligations will be approved once the SKA Observatory is established.
Among others, the provisions of the Convention are: To set out the purpose of the SKA Observatory; defines membership, roles of organs, the Council, the Director- General and staff; sets out high-level principles with regard to finance, intellectual property rights, procurement, operations and access. The SKA Observatory will enter into force once five signatories have ratified the text, including all three host countries namely, South Africa, Australia and the UK.
The rights and responsibilities of South Africa and Australia hosting the SKA telescopes and the UK hosting the SKA Observatory headquarters will be governed by separate bilateral hosting agreements. Hon Deputy Speaker, South Africa has been playing a pioneering role in international Radio Telescope. In 2012, South Africa won the bid to co-host the SKA, which is an international, mega-science project to build the world's largest and most sensitive radio telescope.
The South African Karoo Array Telescope, known as the MeerKat, consists of 64 antennas located in the Karoo desert region in a quiet backdrop for the high and medium
frequency Arrays that will form a critical part of the SKA ground breaking continent. The SKA Radio Telescope project aims to answer some of Astronomy's biggest questions. These include, firstly, how do galaxies evolve and what is dark energy? Secondly, was Einstein right about gravity? Thirdly, how were the first black holes and stars formed? Lastly, are we alone on the planet?
Indeed, hon members, we are living in interesting times The portfolio committee is therefore recommending that the House ratifies the Convention which in no doubt provide South Africa the opportunity to leverage the significant foreign investment and prestige associated with the SKA project. [Applause.] [Time expired.]
IsiXhosa:
Sekela Somlomo ohloniphekileyo, malungu abekekileyo, bantu baseMzantsi Afrika ndiyanibulisa ngale njikalanga.
English:
The DA supports the Convention establishing the Square Kilometre Array, SKA, in the Northern Cape Karoo which is
the epitome of opportunity, innovation and excellence in which South Africa desperately needs today, particularly for education, our collapsing economy that have left 10 million South Africans unemployed, of which 57% of those faces are young people, and to tangibly lead the scientific charge in the wake of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
The Square Kilometre Array will act as a catalyst for science, technology and engineering business opportunities, jobs and innovation, and has the potential to put South Africa on the map of excellence as a world big data and analytics hub. The multibillion rand SKA, is to be hosted in Africa and Australia, it will extend into eight African countries and will be the world's biggest telescope.
It is also one of the biggest-ever scientific projects and multinational collaborations in the name of science. The South African Karoo is soon becoming a home to this node of alien-hunting. The 64-dish MeerKAT telescope will add its gaze to those of other telescopes as they search the skies, furthermore, provide the local community and
South African economy with immense manufacturing, engineering, educational and employment opportunities.
The innovations, skills development and commercial potential emerging as a result of the project are huge. The human capital development is already taking place as a result of the SKA project, with bursaries and scholarships being granted to allow students to learn the necessary cutting- edge science, technology, maths and engineering skills to support the project.
This mega astronomy infrastructure bid is expected to result in investment of about R2 billion in the continent during construction of which already, R1,7 million has already been spent on material sourced from local suppliers in the Northern Cape for building the equipment of Hydro Energy Array. The SKA will drive the development of internet connectivity in both rural and urban areas to handle the big data project.
The World Bank study concluded that every 10% increase in bandwidth connectivity for developing countries produces 1,3% growth in gross domestic product, GDP, of the host
country. The local Carnovan Primary and High School have benefited from astronomy and computer laboratories being built as way of inculcating a culture of science and innovation with the project programme opportunities.
Furthermore, South African university based on radio astronomy courses are benefiting from the 900 grant bursaries created by the project as part of the programme for both undergraduate and postgraduate students. Undergraduate students also conduct outreach programmes designed to excite learners of the Northern Cape about the leading role that science can play in the province. Further Education and Training, FET and technical and vocational education and training, Tvet, students funded by SKA project are developed to be artisans.
It is during this time of excitement and uncertainty that we must commend the good work done by this Department of Science and Technology, even with the minimal budgetary resources that they get from the government. South Africa's success will be determined by our ability to generate knowledge and innovation with the appropriate human capital, infrastructure, financial support and
incentives to sustain the phases of our innovation process.
Therefore, it is high time that the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation is given a greater responsibility and funding to contributing to our crumbling basic and higher education system, to develop a curricular that is focused on problem-solving enhanced by a culture of science, innovation and technology. I thank you. We support this. [Applause.]
Deputy Speaker, hon Mapulane, Stewart Brand, the editor of the Whole Earth Catalogue, an American anti establishment magazine says if the new technology rolls out, if not part of the steam roller you are part of the road. So, let's see whether we are part of the steam roller or part of the road. Obviously Bro Blade being involved we possibly could end up on the lesser side of the equation.
There can be no doubt that science and technology plays an important role in our advancement as a country and as a nation indeed. We must however be masters of our own
destiny and have full control of that destiny. We must be involved throughout the value chain of research, innovation and development of science and technology.
But, also we must participate in the critical role of strategic decision making, managing research and development at a practical level, the location of the Square Kilometre Array Observatory, SKA, which is all what you all not speaking about is in the United Kingdom, far away from where the actual work takes place.
So, the decision making strategic engine about all the important projects including funding within the SKA program is in the United States. The physical SKA is co- located in the Northern Cape and Australia. All the physical work, the real science and technology and development will take pace at these locations. It's regrettable that the colonial relations still persist where the colonial masters take decisions in the United Kingdom, UK and the colonies do the spade work. But, obviously this is the ANC and they are backed by the DA so you guys are happy.
It is regrettable and it demonstrates a lack of fore sight and mentality of always submitting to colonial imperialists, masters will and false superiority. They are not better than us. We are just as capable.
Why couldn't the head office be based in Africa? Why couldn't the engine of the SKA be based in Zambia, Mozambique, Ghana or even in South Africa, closer to the physical infrastructure? South Africa and the African continent as a whole will not derive maximum benefit from this.
Decisions will be made for us. Countries like Botswana, Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia and Zambia will not benefit as much compare to if the observatory was based in Africa. It matters, yes it does. We must not underestimate the proximity of physical location of decision making because those that reside closer to the actual facilities are likely to derive the benefits. Even in the modern era of high speed internet technology and now the development of five to six generation mobile wireless network.
Transformation in research and development must happen while it must start locally, we must seek to play a much bigger role including that of housing head offices of institutions such as the Square Kilometre Array Observatory. We are the South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, an important facility responsible for managing all radio astronomy initiatives and facilities in South Africa.
Its management team is made up of mostly white men. Mostly white men, you must know this Bro Blade's area. That guy has got no idea about what happens. Four out of fifteen are women and only three out fifteen are black. Africans who are responsible for stakeholder relations, human resources and marketing, these are important but they are not the key positions. They are not the scientific positions, construction, planning or technology but obviously Bro Blade being involved we are not on the steam roller, we are part of the road when it comes to the rolling out of technology. Thank you very much.
Hon Deputy Speaker, the convention for the Square Kilometre Array Observatory as SKA, in which South Africa is a partner state comes as a major step forward for the nation. The ratification of this observatory in Parliament today will drive our efforts to ensure the country's further development in the education fields of science and technology.
This collaboration sees one of the biggest scientific partnerships in turn international governs. What is significant for South Africa is that we are one of the three host countries along side Australia and the United Kingdom. This shows the importance in the role South Africa must play to drive the success of this program as key stakeholders.
South Africa will act as a host that assists the establishment of basis for other African nations. The SKA project shall possess the capability of transformational science. It has a combination of sensitivity, angular resolution and survey spit for surpassing the current state of art instruments at relevant radio frequencies.
This means that the radio telescope will improve the understanding of the universe and the law of fundamental physics by monitoring the sky in the never seen before detail and mapping. In doing so, it will be more than one hundred times faster than any other technology that the world currently uses.
In the past we have experienced a brain drain in Africa where students leave the continent to further develop their skills elsewhere and sometimes due to lack of infrastructure and opportunity. In this case, incentives have been made for students who will benefit from this technology and program to remain within the continent and South Africa.
This project will bring about more opportunities for the education within the field and directly contribute to more jobs. We must bring together a fully united collaboration with other African countries to start the development of our technology and capabilities in the high tech industry.
We must start identifying skills and trades that will benefit from this and align our education sector to produce learners capable of exploiting the advantages that come from research and technology with the programs such as this. The IFP welcomes this ratification. Thank you.
Afrikaans:
Agb Voorsitter, as daar nou een ding is wat ek vandag agtergekom het, dan is dit dat daar drie dinge is waarteen 'n mens nie kan wees nie: Jy kan nie teen moedersmelk wees nie, jy kan nie teen ren wees nie, en jy kan nie teen die SKA wees nie!
Tog is daar hier en daar 'n probleempie. Ek sal maar 'n bietjie in die Rooitaal lees.