Pit toilets are extremely dangerous structures and, in some cases, have proven deadly for learners.
Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube said the DBE has eliminated 96% of the pit toilets identified in a 2018 audit, under the SAFE Initiative. This means that pit toilets were eradicated at 3,234 schools.
The North West, Free State, and Mpumalanga achieved 100% pit toilet eradication since the 2018 audit. Limpopo reached 99.74%, KwaZulu-Natal 96.4%, and the Eastern Cape 93.3%. Gauteng, the Western Cape, and the Northern Cape had no schools identified in the original audit.
The Minister revealed that work to build safe sanitation facilities is underway at 141 schools. Work at 90 of these schools is scheduled to be completed in July 2025.
Gwarube acknowledged delays in donor-funded projects, where only 74% of commitments were met.
The minister confirmed that “Moving forward, stalled donor projects will be transferred to provincial education departments for direct oversight.”
Other delays were caused by severe weather conditions, inaccessible rural roads, construction mafia disruptions, and poor contractor performance.
The Department is taking decisive action to ensure projects are completed and will be “terminating underperforming contractors and strengthening security for project sites”.
The DBE will also conduct a new national sanitation audit after conceding that some schools may have been missed during the 2018 audit.
Members of the public can report any remaining pit toilets through the Safe Schools App
