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By Thapelo Molefe
The government has failed to meet its target of eradicating pit toilets at schools by the end of last month
Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube revealed on Friday that 96% of schools identified under the Sanitation Appropriate for Education (SAFE) Initiative in 2018 have successfully eradicated pit toilets.
Speaking at Mavhunga Primary School in Malume on Friday, alongside Limpopo education MEC Mavhungu Lerule-Ramakhanya, the minister described the initiative as a “moment of reckoning”, acknowledging both the progress made and the failures that led to its necessity.
“Today is a moment of great humility and even greater accountability for us as the government,” Gwarube stated.
“We must remember the children who lost their lives due to these unsafe facilities. Their deaths were not just accidents; they were failures of the state.”
Before making the announcement, Gwarube and Lerule-Ramakhanya conducted site visits to monitor the progress of sanitation upgrades.
They assessed conditions at Maguada Primary School in the Vhembe West District and officially handed over newly built toilets at Ludane Primary School.
Despite skepticism about the feasibility of ambitious deadline, Gwarube said that the government must “dare to dream bigger, act faster and solve problems once considered intractable”.
“Our country finds itself where it is today—with a stagnant economy, high unemployment and rampant corruption—because of a culture of low expectations,” she said.
“We must never fall into that trap when it comes to our children’s lives.”
According to the minister, three provinces—Gauteng, Northern Cape and Western Cape—had already eliminated pit toilets before the 2018 audit.
Among the remaining provinces, the North West, Mpumalanga and Free State have achieved 100% eradication rates, while Limpopo in there are still 391 unsafe toilets left.
Challenges also remain in KwaZulu-Natal, where 45 schools still have pit toilets, and 96 schools in the Eastern.
“As of March 31, 2025, we have eradicated 96% of the backlog,” Gwarube announced.
“But this is not a victory—we are not done. 141 schools remain, and while we expect 90 of those to be completed by July, we will not stop until we reach 100%.”
Gwarube did not shy away from addressing the challenges that have delayed full completion.
She cited factors such as inclement weather, poor contractor performance and disruptions by the so-called “construction mafia” as key hurdles.
“In areas like the Eastern Cape and KZN, flooding has made rural schools inaccessible, delaying construction,” she explained.
“We have also had to terminate contracts for underperforming contractors, which adds time as we go through due process to appoint new ones.”
Private donor supported projects under the initiative have also underperformed, with only a 74% completion rate compared to the government’s 96%.
Gwarube announced that moving forward, stalled donor projects would be reassigned to provincial education departments to ensure they were completed without further delay.
To ensure no school was left behind, the Minister also unveiled plans for a new nationwide audit to identify any pit toilets that may have been missed in the original 2018 count.
“While funding is tight, we are determined to be resourceful and leverage partnerships with civil society and the corporate sector,” she said.
“If you see a pit toilet at a school, report it to safeschools.gov.za—we are counting on the public’s help.”
Gwarube warned that simply building new toilets was not enough if they were not maintained properly.
To address this, the department introduced the National School Hygiene Programme in collaboration with Unilever, integrating hygiene education into the Life Orientation curriculum.
INSIDE EDUCATION