FACTBOX-Key issues for S.Africa's alliance talks

JOHANNEBURG, Nov 12 (Reuters) - South Africa's governing alliance led by the ruling ANC begins a three-day meeting on Friday as President Jacob Zuma tries to pacify his leftist allies while also maintaining a pro-business environment.

Here are some details on the alliance, and the key issues the summit will deal with:

ALLIANCE MEMBERS

- The African National Congress, the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) and the South African Communist Party (SACP) are the three main members.

- The smaller South African National Civics Organisation will also participate in the meeting.

KEY ISSUES

- South Africa is struggling to get out of its first recession in 17 years and despite a sharp fall in tax revenue, the left want the government to increase spending on education, health and housing to cushion the poor, who it says have been hardest hit by the economic meltdown.

Extra spending will put pressure on the budget, and with the fiscal deficit seen at a record 7.6 percent of GDP this year, will require even more borrowing that investors will consider excessive. - There are also divisions around the new National Planning Commission headed by former finance minister Trevor Manuel -- a market favourite but unpopular with the unions.

The unions want Manuel sidelined and say former trade unionist Economic Development Minister Ebrahim Patel should instead be in charge of formulating economic policies. - The trade unions want action to weaken the rand currency. There is general consensus that the currency is too strong -- central bank and the government it overvalued -- but the authorities have made it clear that the country will keep to its floating exchange rate policy. Investors were spooked last month when a media report, later denied, suggested Patel would propose to "freeze" the currency at a predetermined rate.

- The ANC's allies are also certain to demand that the government accelerate its job creation efforts, with almost 1 million jobs having been lost during the economic downturn.

- The unions want government to scrap a policy which sees the Central Bank set interest rates in such a way as to keep inflation within a band they say is too low. The unions say this has kept interest rates relatively high, hurting the poor. Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan has said the government will debate the unions' demands.

- Nationalisation has become a rallying cry for the left, particularly for the ANC's vocal youth league, and is bound to be raised at the summit. The ANC and government, though, have dismissed any chance of the state taking over mines.

For a preview of the summit, double-click on [nLC508439] (Reporting by Peroshni Govender; Editing by Giles Elgood)