The Gauteng Department of Education has identified 580 schools across the province that faced sanitation issues, including insufficient toilet facilities and blocked toilets due to low water pressure.
The department’s spokesperson, Phumla Sekhonyane, said contractors had been appointed to do work in all of these schools and a budget of R115 million was set aside for this purpose.
Repairs had been completed at 400 of the 580 schools identified for repairs, she said.
“The MEC has seriously reprimanded the managers who dropped the ball on this crucial mandate and a new team with centre project managers was appointed to remedy the delay.”
“The MEC remains firm that sanitation deadlines remain non-negotiable,” said Sekhonyane.
The department expected repairs in the remaining 150 schools to be completed by the end of this month.
According to Sekhonyane, due to the special interest the Gauteng Education MEC, Panyaza Lesufi had taken in Tembisa, a decision was taken to do an overhaul in 50 schools in the area with an estimated budget of R15 million.
Earlier, Equal Education announced that its members were set to take to the streets of Joburg demanding decent and dignified sanitation in schools.
According to the organisation, the sanitation crisis at schools, particularly those in Tembisa, had continued unabated despite Lesufi’s promise to fix all school toilets in the province by August 31.
An audit of school toilets in September by Equal Education identified over 200 blocked or closed toilets in Tembisa alone.
According to Equal Education, 65 inmates sharing a single toilet at the overcrowded Joburg Medium Prison were better off than pupils in Tembisa – where a single toilet was shared by more than 100 children.
