National
SKA benefits also for ordinary people─── SABRINA DEAN 17:20 Fri, 29 Aug 2014
Bloemfontein - A parliamentary committee has welcomed recent statements by Science Minister Naledi Pandor that construction of the Square Kilometre Array project is expected to bring more than R30-billion into SA.
Chairperson of the Select Committee on Trade and International Relations, Eddie Makue, said in a statement this week it is clear that the SKA is not only for scientists, but also for ordinary people.
He added the project will sharpen African childrens’ enthusiasm in this “field of wonder” and urged Government to ensure young South Africans, particularly children from rural areas, are encouraged to pursue scientific studies.
Pandor reportedly told a Heads of Missions Conference in Pretoria that billions of rands are expected to roll into the country as the projects are brought into operation.
She said the MeerKat radio telescope, comprising 64 antennae, will be functional by 2016, while construction on the SKA is set to begin in 2018.
Sabrina Dean/OFM News
