Pretoria - The Department of Social Development and the Central Drug Authority (CDA) are set to launch a national an anti-substance abuse campaign.
The campaign, to be launched on Thursday, aims to get people talking about the problem in the public arena, homes and schools. It also seeks to stimulate debate and action at all levels of society.
Thousands of people are struggling to shake a crippling substance abuse addiction, which contributes to crime, gangsterism, domestic violence, and many other forms of social problems.
"The South African government recognises that the drug problem is complex and requires decisive and collective national action if the goal of creating a drug-free society is to be achieved," Social Development's Mandla Mathebula said on Tuesday.
The launch would take place in Upington in the Northern Cape, where there are high levels of substance abuse and foetal alcohol syndrome.
The campaign would run under the theme, "No place for drugs in my community".
It will see Social Development Minsiter Edna Molewa and key industry role players conducting door-to-doors in the areas most affected by substance abuse, and educate communities on its dangers.
After the national launch provinces would conduct their own programmes in the form of door-to-door campaigns throughout the country, Mathebula said.
Data indicates that alcohol remains the drug of choice for South Africans, with a drinking population boasting one of the world's highest rates of alcohol consumption, according to the most recent World Health Organisation (WHO) report in 2004.
More than 27 percent of South African men and nearly 10 percent of women admitted to being alcohol dependent, according to a 1998 survey contained in the WHO report.
