CAIRO - Prime Minister Essam Sharaf starts an official visit to South Africa Saturday at the head of a ministerial delegation aimed at bolstering ties between Cairo and Johannesburg, the official Middle East News Agency (MENA) reported. It said that Premier Sharaf will make an official visit to South Africa during which he will hold talks with Prime Minister Jacob Zuma with the aim of bolstering strategic relations between the two countries. The Sharaf-Zuma talks will also deal with regional and international issues of bilateral concern as well as strengthening ties between the two countries. Sharaf, accompanied by foreign and trade ministers, is representing Egypt at the second conference meeting between The Southern African Development Community (SADC), the East African Community (EAC) and the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) trade blocs, which plan to merge. South Africa is hosting the talks, which start Saturday.