The first load of aid relief for Zimbabwe will leave from outside the South African Council of Churches building in Johannesburg on Monday.

The trucks, carrying 37 tons of food and over 6 000 blankets, will be delivered to Christian Care in Harare who will distribute it to families that have been displaced by President Robert Mugabe's Operation Restore Order.

This relief aid is the result of the recent visit to Harare by a delegation of church leaders of the South African Council of Churches, who visited one of the transit camps outside Harare and met with the Zimbabwe Council of Churches.

Some of those delegates will be at the SACC offices on Monday to pray and bless the first convoy as it sets off for Zimbabwe. They are Bishop Ivan Abraham, presiding bishop of the Methodist church, Pastor Ray McCauley, of Rhema and president of the International Federation of Christian Churches, the Archbishop of Cape Town, Njongonkulu Ndungane, and Dr Molefe Tsele, general secretary of the SACC, who is helping to co-ordinate the nation-wide church relief.

Churches across the country will be making a special appeal to their congregations this Sunday in order to raise funding for the relief work. A total of R350 000 has already been raised to pay for the Monday's first shipment of aid.

Monday's first consignment has been facilitated by Joint Management Aid (JAM), who have made two trucks available and helped to procure the food. JAM works extensively in Africa providing aid and assistance to marginalised groups of people.

For more information: Rev Ron Steele, 082-891-7458