Ms Patricia de Lille, Minister of Tourism;
Ms Magdeline Sotyu, Deputy Minister of Tourism;
Dr Zamani Saul, Premier of the Northern Cape;
Ms Venus Blennies, MEC for Economic Development and Tourism, Northern Cape ;
Mr. Victor Tharage, Director-General, Tourism;
Mr Daan du Toit, Acting Director-General, DSI:
Adv Justice Bekebeke, Director-General, Northern Cape Provincial Government;
Ms Ms Pontsho Maruping, Managing Director, SARAO;
Dr Angus Patersen, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, NRF;
Mr. Rhoode Itumeleng, Executive Mayor, Pixley ka Seme District Municipality;
Mr. Rodney Jikela, Mayor, Kareeberg Local Municipality.
It is my honour and privilege to deliver this address on this historic occasion, which marks World Tourism Day and the formal launch of our country’s Astro-Tourism Strategy.
As Minister of Science, Technology, and Innovation, I wish to start by expressing my sincerest gratitude to the government of the Northern Cape and in particular, the community of Carnarvon for supporting this event.
Thank you for the warm reception that you have given us, ever since we started to engage with you on the establishment of major scientific projects such as the SALT, MeerKAT, and the SKA.
Your support and participation in these global science astronomical projects gives eloquent expression to our belief that science must be at the service of society. This draws direct a link between this community and our ancient African ancestors who walked this earth and wondered about one of humanity’s most enduring questions: what is the history of the universe?
I also wish to express my sincerest gratitude to my cabinet colleague, Ms. De Lille for her support and the Premier of the Northern Cape, Dr Zamani Saul, for this partnership across all tiers of government. This is cooperation is a good example of how we should continue to work as the 7th administration.
As the Department of Science and Innovation we have always believed that the building science infrastructure can make a bigger contribution to the development of local communities and one such contribution is in how science infrastructure can boost the local economies of rural towns, through what some call science tourism.
It is for this reason that today’s event seeks to demonstrate the connection between Astronomy and Tourism, though the launch of our country’s Astro-Tourism Strategy.
As you may be aware, astrotourism is the practice of traveling to different locations with dark skies or radio quietness to observe astronomical phenomena such as meteorites, eclipses, galaxies and stars as the Earth moves in its orbital plane.
Astrotourism is built on the foundations of deeper cosmological traditions observed by ancestors in observing the skies from time immemorial, as reference points to guide their travels, to predict changing seasons for moving herds or planting crops. Our ancestors also wondered, like we still do today, about the mysteries of the night skies.
The modern-day concept of astrotourism refers to people interacting with and experiencing observatories, telescopes, museums, planetariums, meteorite sites, visitor centres, amateur astronomy clubs, stargazing, tour-guides, Astro-routes, and accommodation establishments, etc.
As Minister of Science, Technology, and Innovation, it is however also important to explain the astronomy part of what we mean by astrotourism. Astronomy is the science of studying the origins and evolution of the universe.
It tells us how the Earth itself was formed, the future of our planet and its place in the infinitely big universe. Astronomy draws on basic science disciplines which you learn in school such as maths, physics, chemistry and biology – all of which are crucial in theories and experiments to help us better understand what constitutes galaxies, stars, black holes, dark energy and dark matters and the dynamic forces at work in an ever-expanding universe.
It also holds the key to finding out if there is life on other planets and what that life would be like. It can help us understand the question humans have wondered about throughout the ages: are we alone?
Through astronomy we can also explain, by way of example, objects entering into our earth’s atmosphere from time to time. A recent example is the meteorite which crashed into our atmosphere on 25 August 2024, travelling at 72 360 kilometres per hour as it exploded north of Gqeberha, releasing energy equal to 92 tonnes of dynamite, along with a massive sonic boom.
South Africa – and specifically Carnarvon - is located in what one might call the goldilocks of earth-based astronomy: on the edge of the African continent, with vast open night skies and, importantly, limited radio interference making it possible for our instruments to look deep into the universe to search for answers to the big questions.
Beyond science itself, astronomy has also facilitated the development and in some cases discoveries of new technologies - from radio, optical, infra-red telescopes to gravitational detectors, GPS (global positioning satellites), Wi-Fi, tomography, supercomputing, etc, which in turn have wider applications across society today.
So next time you speak on your cell phone, just remember the Wi-Fi system originated from an astronomer using methods from radio astronomy to strengthen signals to increase the communications between computers, which was turned into Wi-Fi.
Without GPS, many of you might not find your way around our cities to locate a shop or place of interests, and we would not be able to conduct global trade across our vast oceans.
Advances in satellite technology and radio astronomy are all built on the principles of Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity developed in 1915 and is the basis for today’s reliable day-to-day communication services such telecommunications, enabling global connectivity for phone/mobile calls, internet access, and broadcasting.
We use Wi-Fi every day. Wi-Fi uses techniques which were developed for analysing and transferring radio signals from black holes wirelessly in complex environments, later found expression in modern day Wi-Fi applications.
Similarly, astronomers developed tomography which is the basis of modern-day magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans now extensively used in our hospitals.
Astronomy thus not only enhances our understanding of big questions about cosmic origins but has also provided us with technologies which have improved the quality of life on earth.
Therefore, for the DSI, it is our wish not only to develop the vast tourist potential of this incredible heritage, but also to inspire a new generation of astronomers and allied scientists to emerge from all our communities. We want the next Einstein to emerge on African soil!
DSI Support for Astro-tourism
As part of advancing astrotourism, my department is partnering with the Department of Tourism in co-funding is the planned construction of the Carnarvon SKA Science Visitor Centre (CSVC) in Carnarvon which is nearing the start of the construction phase. Construction is expected to start early next year.
The entities of my Department’s such as the South African Radio Astronomy Observatory and Southern African Astronomical Observatory will also work closely with the Department of Tourism to ensure the promotion of astrotourism activities.
The Northern Cape province has the privilege of hosting two of our country’s premier scientific instruments SALT-the Southern African Large Telescope and the SKA or Square Kilometre Array. The Premier of the Province can be proud to host this globally unique astronomical assets.
Community benefits from the SALT telescope
Arising from the presence of these two world class scientific instruments in this province, the people of the Northern Cape have derived immense benefit. Through SALT, the Sutherland and surrounding communities have benefitted as follows-
- The development of accommodation establishments which has led to the creation of 302 jobs directly and several jobs indirectly. The SALT observatory remains the single biggest employer in the town of Sutherland, it recently trained and employed 8 previously disadvantaged youth to operate and manage the tours to the SALT telescope;
- With the support of the Department of Arts and Culture, we have trained numerous young people on entrepreneurship, supported local arts-based businesses and informal craft markets;
- Through our SALT and SAAO facilities, the local clinic received medical consumables valued at R100 000 and 2 specialised trauma beds each valued at R50 000. The staff at SAAO and SALT are assisting in the maintenance of clinic equipment;
- The science laboratories in both the Primary and High Schools were refurbished and equipped with laboratory equipment;
- We have transformed an unused building into a Sutherland Community Development centre. Today, the centre is equipped with 36 computers and provides free access to internet for learners, youth, and the community; and
- The Community Centre serves as a platform to host various NGOs and government departments (e.g., Department of Labour and Social Services) to facilitate empowerment programmes such as construction internships for the unemployed youth, website and coding programmes for the youth and local businesses. The Social Services Department has implemented programmes on HIV, Drug Abuse and Alcoholic Foetal Syndrome.
Community benefits from the SKA Project
Through the SKA project, the Carnarvon, and surrounding communities, have benefited as follows-
- 1251 grants and bursaries awarded since inception;
- 43 Young Professional Graduates supported;
- 90% of the Northern Cape staff are from the local communities;
- 8790 direct and indirect job opportunities created in the Karoo during the MeerKAT construction activities ;
- 383 technicians trained from the local community, with 19 more started in 2020;.
- 288 million spent with local Karoo suppliers, and local emerging contractors; and
- 21 SMMEs developed and participated in international cutting-edge design and development programs of SKA.
It also pleases me to announce that, our Department is leading the establishment of the Carnarvon SKA Visitor Centre (CSVC) in Carnarvon. We are collaborating with the Department of Tourism, the Northern Cape Department of Economic Development and Tourism, the Kareeberg Local Municipality, and SARAO, with the SKA Observatory also coming on board.
This is a multi-million project to construct a world-class facility here in Carnarvon that will use the science of the SKA telescope to create a tourism hub in the area, thereby combining science and tourism to boost economic development in a rural environment.
Together with the Department of Tourism, we have pledged an initial R31 million each towards the establishment of the facility. The Northern Cape Department of Economic Development and Tourism pledged R2.5 million to be used for the environmental approval processes associated with the establishment of the facility.
All of this demonstrates the immense potential that science tourism has, not only for the development of science, but also to ensure that we truly use science to change the socio-economy reality for our people.
We believe that, together with the Department of Tourism, the Northern Cape provincial government and our other partners, we can use the astro-tourism to change the lives of the young people of Carnarvon and the Northern Cape province for the better