SOUTH AFRICA – Questions have been raised over South Africa’s progress in addressing school sanitation after Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube announced the completion of sanitation projects at all 3,372 schools identified in the Department of Basic Education’s (DBE) 2018 Sanitation Appropriate for Education (SAFE) Initiative audit.
As previously reported, during a site visit to Dimbaza Primary School in the Eastern Cape on 6 July, Gwarube announced that every school included in the 2018 audit had received safe and appropriate toilet facilities.
She said all 3,372 schools identified through the 2018 SAFE Initiative audit had been provided with new sanitation facilities.
Gwarube said the announcement did not mean pit toilets had disappeared from every school in the country, adding that South Africa’s wider school infrastructure challenges remained.
Following the site visit on 6 July, Chairperson of the Select Committee on Education, Sciences and the Creative Industries Makhi Feni criticised the DBE for what he described as incorrect messaging around school sanitation.
According to a statement released by the parliamentary communication services on 8 July, Feni said there should be no “tiptoeing” around the poor state of school sanitation in many schools, particularly in some rural provinces.
“It is unfortunate that the DBE and the Minister knowingly cited as an achievement the completion of an old project that should have been completed in 2018, when in fact the backlog had instead become so real,” said Feni.
“Eradication of pit latrines needs continuous work given the challenges around water, where public schools can go for days without water and rely on Jojo tanks. It seems the communication was used to communicate misleading targets.”
The statement indicated that the committee had visited various provinces to experience firsthand the sanitation challenges, particularly in the Eastern Cape, North West and Limpopo.
According to the statement, many schools struggle to access water for sanitation and kitchen facilities, while classrooms for early childhood development are another challenge.
Feni said the department should be careful in its messaging around sanitation issues, as they are fundamental to the lives of poor black learners.
“It would be preferable if DBE and the Minister communicate maintenance plans and the rollout speed in trying to end the worst challenge of our times in schools. When we’ve had the dignity of poor black learners compromised by this fundamental right to proper sanitation, the least we can do is not rush to pat ourselves on the back,” said Feni.
“We therefore call on DBE to communicate the real extent of the challenge and genuinely start doing meaningful work in trying to resolve it. We cannot limit ourselves to a 2018 SAFE Initiative, but we note the information as shared.”
According to a statement released by Amnesty International South Africa, the complete eradication of pit toilets in schools included in the SAFE Initiative is an important step towards protecting learners’ rights and safety.
Amnesty International South Africa Executive Director Shenilla Mohamed said that while they welcomed the long-overdue development, many schools were still using pit toilets that had not been accounted for.
“Going forward, the department must conduct an updated audit of all schools still using pit toilets, including those that were not part of the SAFE Initiative, and include Early Childhood Development (ECD) centres. It must then outline how it plans to eradicate all remaining pit toilets in schools and ECD centres, with clear timelines,” said Mohamed.
“The presence of pit toilets in any school violates learners’ rights to health, sanitation, education, dignity and, in some cases, life.”
DBE Ministerial Spokesperson Lukhanyo Vangqa said Gwarube’s statement was accurate and clearly referred to the completion of the 2018 SAFE Initiative backlog.
He said all 3,372 schools identified through the 2018 SAFE Initiative audit had reached practical completion and had been provided with safe and appropriate sanitation facilities.
“The Minister did not state that every pit toilet structure or every sanitation challenge in every public school had disappeared. She expressly acknowledged that some challenges may have arisen after the 2018 audit, that some schools may have been unintentionally omitted from that audit, and that old structures may remain at certain schools even after new facilities have been provided,” said Vangqa.
He further said the department recognised concerns raised through parliamentary oversight visits.
Vangqa said any unsafe or inadequate sanitation identified outside the completed SAFE Initiative backlog must be investigated and addressed urgently by the relevant provincial education department, with national monitoring and support.
He said the Minister accurately reported that all 3,372 projects forming part of the backlog identified through the 2018 SAFE Initiative audit had reached practical completion.
“That statement should not be interpreted as a claim that no school in South Africa presently faces a sanitation or water supply challenge. The distinction between completion of the defined 2018 SAFE Initiative backlog and any remaining or subsequently identified sanitation needs has been consistently explained by the Minister,” said Vangqa.
He said the cost of completing the yet-to-be-identified pit toilets that may remain would depend on the number and condition of facilities identified through updated provincial assessments, the type of sanitation solution required at each school, water availability, geographic accessibility, and whether old structures must be demolished or secured.
Vangqa said provincial education departments were responsible for identifying and budgeting for remaining infrastructure needs, supported by national monitoring, technical assistance and targeted infrastructure programmes.
He said South Africa’s overall school infrastructure backlog exceeded R120 billion, including classrooms, laboratories, libraries, fencing and other facilities.
Vangqa said the completion of the 2018 SAFE Initiative backlog was an important achievement, but it did not mark the end of government’s responsibility for school sanitation.
He said the next phase of work must focus on:
- Identifying schools with sanitation challenges that emerged after the 2018 audit or were not captured in it;
- Ensuring old and unsafe pit structures are demolished, decommissioned or properly secured;
- Ensuring newly installed facilities remain functional where schools experience unreliable water supply;
- Strengthening provincial maintenance and rapid response arrangements; and
- Accurately reporting progress and outstanding risks.
“The Minister has directed that provincial education departments must treat any remaining unsafe sanitation as an urgent learner safety matter. The national Department will continue to monitor provincial performance and provide policy, planning and technical support,” said Vangqa.
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