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Deputy President Jacob Zuma is to visit the Alfred Nzo Municipality in Mount Frere in the Eastern Cape on Sunday, 13 October 2002, to get a firsthand feel of the social and economic challenges facing the community.

The Deputy President will be accompanied by the Minister for Social Development, Zola Sikweyiya, and the visit is part of the government's outreach programme, the Imbizo Focus Week, which began on 7 October and ends on Sunday.

The Alfred Nzo District Municipality is located in the northern part of the Province of the Eastern Cape, previously known as the Transkei. It hosts two of the nodal areas of the Integrated Sustainable Rural Development Programme (ISRDP).

The visit forms part of government's programme of assessing poverty levels within communities, particularly poverty afflicting children. In terms of the ISRDP, this area is ranked under category one, as it has a high poverty rate and is thus a government priority area.

The Deputy President will use the opportunity to mobilise non-governmental organisations and the business sector to form partnerships with government to respond to the challenges facing the area.

The Imbizo will take place at Dangwana, in Mount Frere, starting at 9am.

The media is invited to cover the event.

For more information please contact Delsey Sithole on 082 412 3702.

Issued by The Presidency

11 October 2002