Cisco has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with SA's Department of Science and Technology (DST) to become the Square Kilometre Array's (SKA's) technology partner.
The US-based networking solutions provider will invest R60 million in the project.
SKA - the world's largest radio telescope, hosted in SA and Australia - is moving on to the next phase, which will be the last stage before construction begins in 2018.
In his budget speech last month, finance minister Nhlanhla Nene said R2.1 billion will be spent over the next three years on the SKA, a telescope that aims to probe scientific questions in outer space.
The Cisco investment comes after Germany-based Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy in December last year pledged to invest R151 million to build and install radio receivers on the MeerKat radio telescope project - the predecessor to the SKA.
According to Cisco, its joint strategic collaboration with the DST, which was initiated in 2011, represents the largest single investment to any one project Cisco has made to date globally.
Under the MOU, a Cisco Networking Academy and Knowledge Centre have been established in Carnavon, Northern Cape, where the SKA will be hosted, to help local community members develop basic and intermediate ICT and networking skills.
Optical Transport Research, in partnership with Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU), has also been established. It includes the donation of Cisco equipment to create a fully-fledged, multimillion-dollar, state-of-the-art laboratory facility, as well as direct access to key expert resources in Cisco's Optical Engineering Business Unit in San Jose.
Cisco says the research is in line with the DST's National ICT R&D and Innovation Roadmap, a 10-year plan aimed to co-ordinate and manage ICT R&D and innovation activities nationally, regionally and in relation to international partners.
The company has also donated a next-generation data centre laboratory and equipment to the SKA SA project office to enable testing and validation of the central signal processing architectural and technical specification requirements.
A Cisco TelePresence System donation to SKA South Africa and its key partners' sites (Rhodes University and NMMU) will provide high-definition immersive video capabilities to enable and facilitate interdepartmental collaboration both locally and internationally, says Cisco.
"The signing of this MOU with Cisco demonstrates the vital role public-private partnerships play in today's South Africa as a facilitator of change, as well as economic growth and development," says Naledi Pandor, minister of science and technology.
"Our joint investment programme in the SKA project is really leading the way and setting a global example for how technology innovation can support South Africa's goals to become a leading player on the global stage as a designation for any science project of any magnitude in the future. This project will revolutionise science and technology for South Africa and Africa as a whole, and also supports our government's development agenda for skills development and job creation."
Randy Pond, senior vice-president of operations at Cisco, says strategically partnering with the DST to support the SKA project is a key milestone for Cisco not only in SA but globally, as it represents one of the largest single investments Cisco has made in any one project to date.
"Our goal is to take on the role as long-term strategic adviser to organisations and governments around the world in order to demonstrate how technology innovation can drive sustainable growth and economic prosperity. Our involvement and investment in such a pioneering and ground-breaking initiative such as the SKA project demonstrates this."
Pond notes in this era where the Internet of everything is driving new approaches and significant technological change, Cisco believes the most significant opportunity is for emerging market countries like SA to leverage technology as a platform for socio and economic transformation using the network to improve lives, empower citizens, and drive change.
Share