Mpumalanga makes progress in removing pit toilets before next financial year

About 80 schools in Mpumalanga still use pit toilets, according to presentations made during a stakeholder meeting in Emalahleni addressing the latrines crisis in schools.

It was organised by the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) after it was established that several schools in the province still use pit toilets.

SAHRC said the use of the toilets continued, even though they had been declared degrading, unsafe and banned by the minimum uniform norms and standards for Public School Infrastructure Act of 2013.

Fundamental human rights

SAHRC manager in Mpumalanga Eric Mokonyama has called on authorities to eradicate the remaining pit toilets.

“The commission has committed to engage the Mpumalanga department of education to have safety measures around the existing pit toilets to avoid and protect pupils’ lives and fundamental human rights enshrined in the constitution,” said Mokonyama.

“SAHRC noted good progress, as the province now has fewer than 80 schools with pit toilets. Commitments were made to eradicate them before the 2025- 2026 financial year.”

Mpumalanga education spokesperson Jasper Zwane said the number of schools that use pit toilets was low – in contrast to the 80 schools mentioned by the commission.

“The province has only three schools currently solely using pit latrines, meaning these schools do not have other forms of ablution facilities.

“In these schools, contractors are on site and construction of ablution facilities is at an advanced stage. It is for this reason that the department stated that it will eradicate pit latrines in this financial year.

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“There are 28 schools which have other forms of toilets [waterborne or enviro loos] but because of the increase in the number of pupils, the schools also use the existing pit toilets. Other schools are reluctant to demolish them because there are times when they experience water supply-related challenges. They then resort to the pit latrines.”

Zwane said the MEC made a promise that in her 100 days in office, there will be no school using pit latrines only.

He has urged school governing bodies to work with the department to allow their demolition.

New Minister of Basic Education Siviwe Gwarube promised to meet the education MECs from all nine provinces to discuss these issues.

An incident where three-yearold Unecebo Mboteni died after falling into a pit toilet in the Eastern Cape’s Mdantsane township in April is currently being investigated.

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