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Friday, January 16, 2009.

From Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I'm Beth Shirley.

Making headlines today:

On Thursday, telecommunications companies Neotel and MTN South Africa announced that they would collaborate to install a 5 000-km fibre-optics cable. The cable will service South Africa's major cities.

It would be fully installed within the next two years, and would cost between R1,7-billion and R2-billion.

The two-year project's costs would be equally shared between MTN and Neotel. MTN South Africa MD Tim Lowry estimated that by combining the two companies' resources, each company would be saving between R400-million and R500-million.

South African President Kgalema Motlanthe has signed a Bill into law that will see the creation of South Africa's own space agency later this year.

The National Space Agency Act will pull together all space-related activities under one banner. It will provide for the establishment of a national space agency to implement a space programme in South Africa.

The Department of Science and Technology said that the agency would promote the peaceful use of outer space, as well as foster research in astronomy, earth observation, communications, navigation and space physics.

The DST said that the agency must also facilitate the development of space missions, develop technology platforms, and obtain space satellite data for any organ of state.

Also making headlines:

A survey reveals that emerging markets are more optimistic about the efforts to combat climate change.
Zimbabwe's central bank will introduce a Z$100-trillion banknote.
British adventurers will head for Timbuktu in a biofuelled flying car.
And, Cadillac unveils Barack Obama's new presidential limousine.

That's a round up of news making headlines today. For more on these and other stories please visit engineeringnews.co.za.