South Africa plans to be both home to the world's largest radio telescope, and to help build it, Science and Technology Minister Mosibudi Mangena said on Friday.

Speaking in his department's budget vote debate in the National Assembly in Cape Town, Mangena said 500 million rand (70 million U. S. dollars) had been allocated for the project.

"Initially, in our bid for the Square Kilometer Array (SKA) we intended to be considered only as site," said the minister. "However during the bid process, it soon became clear that we could play a far greater role in the development of the SKA technology and its science."

The country's other telescope project, the Karoo Array Telescope (KAT), would help develop skills required for the larger SKA project.

"We have assembled an excellent team to build KAT, which will be equivalent to approximately one percent of the SKA," he added.

"One of the welcome results of this mission-driven innovation has been a steady attraction of key personnel back to South Africa, " he said.

South Africa and Australia are short-listed for the SKA project.