MEDIA RELEASE
NO. 58/ 2010
01 FEBRUARY 2010

The newly established Social Development Portfolio Committee will hold its first meeting at 11:00 on Tuesday 02 February 2010.

The meeting will be preceded by a launch event at 10:00. Cllr Brett Herron, Chairperson of the new Portfolio Committee and Cllr Grant Pascoe, Mayoral Committee Member for Social Development, will use this occasion to point out the issues they plan to address and the priorities that will require urgent action this year.

Mansoor Mohamed, Executive Director: Economic, Social Development and Tourism as well as Chris O’Connor, Acting Director: Social Development will also attend.

All media are welcome to attend.

Date: Tuesday 02 February

Time: 10:00 – 10:30

Venue: In front of Crush Room, 5th floor, Podium Block, Civic Centre, Cape Town

Refreshments will be served.

Council established the Social Development Portfolio Committee on 26 November 2009. The establishment of this Committee resulted in the name change of the former Economic, Social Development and Tourism Portfolio Committee, which is now known as the Economic Development and Tourism Portfolio Committee.

Mansoor Mohamed, Executive Director: Economic, Social Development and Tourism, said that this Committee was established in recognition of the serious developmental challenges that communities in Cape Town face. “These challenges include amongst others poverty, substance abuse, unemployment, gangsterism, crime and the impact of HIV/Aids. These are clear indications and symptoms of communities who are in urgent need of developmental initiatives to help them escape the negative spirals which result when these needs are not adequately addressed,” said Mohamed.

In order to see firsthand what challenges the different communities of the Metropole face, the Councillors who serve on the new Portfolio Committee and officials of the Social Development Department embarked on a bus trip on 14 January 2010 to areas such as Langa, Delft, Mfuleni, Khayelitsha and Ottery. This was followed by a Workshop held on 28 January 2010, during which the Department and the Portfolio Committee agreed upon the challenges they need to focus on for the next six months (January to June 2010) and then the next financial year (July 2010 to June 2011).


END

ISSUED BY:
COMMUNICATION DEPARTMENT
CITY OF CAPE TOWN


MEDIA QUERIES:
CHRIS O’CONNOR
ACTING DIRECTOR: SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT
CITY OF CAPE TOWN
TEL: 021 400 9501 CELL: 084 629 7950