Deputy Minister returns to the Western Cape to engage men on their plans to end alcohol and substance abuse
The Deputy Minister of the Department of Social Development, Mrs Hendrietta Bogopane-Zulu, will on 19 January be visiting Khayamandi in the Western Cape to host dialogues with men in the community.
This visit is a follow up meeting from the launch of the Festive Season Campaign in December 2018, when the Deputy Minister - in partnership with the Department of Police, visited community members in various taverns of Khayamandi.
The interaction with the community raised a need for a dialogue session to engage men on various social and structural drivers of HIV/ Aids and gender-based violence focusing on prevention, care and support under the Department’s Men Championing Change Programme.
At the time, Deputy Minister Bogopane-Zulu also engaged patrons and owners on the need to be compliant with the norms and standards of the National Liquor Act.
The campaign, which runs until February 2019, is held under the theme: “Building a Community that is Free of Alcohol and Drug Abuse” and seeks to educate the public, particularly people in institutions of higher learning, pregnant women and primary caregivers to children and persons with disabilities about the harmful effects of alcohol and drug abuse.
The campaign also encourages conversation with parents and adults about the active role they can play in fostering alcohol and drug-free communities.
The Festive Season Campaign is part of the Central Drug Authority’s implementation of the National Drug Master Plan (NDMP). Engaging communities in preventing alcohol and illicit drug abuse is the central goal of the NDMP.
According to a 2018 report titled “The cost of harmful alcohol use in South Africa” cited in the South Africa Medical Journal, it is estimated that Government spends R37. 9 billion per annum on alcohol-related crimes, violence and accidents.
Given its location in the wine-farming areas of the Western Cape and the dop system, Stellenbosch is one of the areas with excessive alcohol consumption - fuelling domestic violence and high levels of Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders.
Members of the media are invited to attend and cover the events, scheduled as follows:
Men’s Dialogues
Date: 19 January 2019
Time: 10h30
Venue: Khayamandi Heritage, Stellenbosch
Tavern visits
Date: 19 January 2019
Time: Late afternoon to early evening
Venue: Khayamandi Settlement and surrounding areas
Media can RSVP by contacting:
Nomfundo Xulu-Lentsoane
Cell: 066 480 6845
E-mail: NomfundoLe@dsd.gov.za
Moeketsi Khoaele
Cell: 066 286 2823
E-mail: MoeketsiK@dsd.gov.za
Enquiries:
Lumka Oliphant
Cell: 083 484 8067
E-mail: LumkaO@dsd.gov.za
