Minister Blade Nzimande: Launch of Remote Operations Centre and Visitor Centre at South African Astronomical Observatory

Programme Director
Minister of Tourism, Ms Patricia De Lille
Deputy Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Ms Nomalungelo Gina
Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Science, Technology and Innovation, Ms Tsakani Shiviti
Director-General of the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation, Dr Mlungisi Cele
Deputy Directors-General
Chairpersons and CEOs of our entities
Officials of the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation
Our special guests, the schoolchildren and Principals

Thank you to each of you for making the time to attend this event. I am particularly excited that we have our learners here today.

This event forms part of our Department’s 2025/26 Budget Vote Debate Outreach Programme and there are a number of reasons why we have chosen to hold it at this facility.

Firstly, astronomy is one of the strategic priorities of our government and over the past three decades, we have made significant investments in building and upgrading our country’s astronomy infrastructure.

It is these investments that have made it possible for our country to earn the privilege of co-hosting one of the biggest scientific projects of our time – the Square Kilometre Array (SKA).

This magnificent facility that is hosting us today – the South African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO) – is another example of our investment in astronomy infrastructure as the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation.

As you may have already heard, this facility is one of our country’s premier and oldest astronomy facilities and it is now also a heritage site. It also has a strong outreach and educational component and so it is the perfect venue to host an occasion of this nature.

I must say I am highly impressed by this Observatory’s strong focus on outreach, especially its science engagement programmes with schools and learners from disadvantaged communities.

Equally impressive is the high volume of visitors that come to this facility. This component of your work is particularly important because historically, some sections of our society were prevented, by law, from studying science.

This facility therefore enables us to facilitate access to science disciplines and careers for thousands of children from all sections of our society.

Secondly, astronomy is often perceived as an abstract discipline that has no tangible connection to the day-to-day needs of people.

On the contrary, astronomy offers numerous day-to-day benefits for households, communities, and industries. Some examples of how astronomy has changed our world include the following:

• Accurate timekeeping and reference frame for GPS – The position of the Earth and the stars in the sky has held an integral role in timekeeping, from the earliest calendars to today’s satellite navigation and positioning services.

• Invention of Wi-Fi – Using techniques developed for analysing and transferring radio signals from black holes wirelessly in complex environments, later found expression in modern-day Wi-Fi applications.

• Health care – Medical imaging: the use of interferometry techniques to produce high resolution images from multiple telescopes found application in Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI scans).

• Communication – Advances in satellite technology and radio astronomy telescopes provide reliable day-to-day communication services such as telecommunications, enabling global connectivity for mobile calls, internet access, and broadcasting.

• Education and outreach – Astronomy enriches curiosity and cultural life through planetarium shows, star-gazing events, and science museums, fostering a sense of wonder and a connection to the broader universe – and it enhances public understanding of science, particularly among young people.

Thirdly, I often make the point that our public science institutions and scientists are doing wonderful and high-impact work, but unfortunately, much of this work is not known to the citizens of our country.

To help address this challenge, our Department has recently adopted a new mantra, which is “Placing Science, Technology and Innovation at the centre of Government, Education, Industry and Society.”

Through this mantra, we wish to achieve a number of things, one of them being increasing awareness about the work that is being done by our public science institutions and scientists and inculcating a deeper appreciation for the value of science among communities.

Therefore, by involving the learners and schools in today’s event, we are actually addressing the aspects of “education” and “society” in our Department’s mantra.

Education and science are mutually reinforcing. You can’t hope to provide quality education without quality science, and you can’t hope to produce quality science without quality education.

Fourthly, given the scientific and historical value of this Observatory, which is now a heritage site, our being here is also in line with our country’s recently adopted Astro-Tourism Strategy, which we developed in partnership with the Department of Tourism.

Through this Strategy, we aim to position our country as a leading destination for astro-tourism by leveraging its unique advantage of dark, clear skies.

This Strategy focuses on developing infrastructure, optimising astronomy-related tourism offerings, fostering public-private partnerships, promoting inclusivity, and driving transformation within the sector.

Ultimately, our goal is to boost both scientific advancement and economic growth through sustainable and inclusive tourism. Astro-tourism also draws heavily from the vast and untapped reservoirs of our indigenous knowledge systems, and I am pleased to learn that this Observatory has a dedicated section that promotes indigenous astronomy.

In conclusion, the two facilities we are launching here today are an important addition to our country’s astronomy infrastructure and as stated, they also serve to advance the objectives of our country’s Astro-Tourism Strategy.

Most importantly, these two facilities are an implementation of our Department’s mantra of placing science, technology, and innovation at the centre of Government, Education, Industry and Society.

These two centres must therefore help us to produce astronomers and other varieties of scientists from such communities as Nyanga, Gugulethu, Langa, Khayelitsha, Mitchells Plain, Grassy Park, Hanover Park and many such areas.

Congratulations to the NRF and SAAO.

I thank you.