By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube announced that the eradication of pit toilets identified in the 2018 SAFE audit has been completed through its 2018 Sanitation Appropriate for Education (SAFE) Initiative.
Gwarube made the announcement during a visit to Dimbaza Primary School outside Qonce on Monday, 06 July 2026.
The minister said all 3,372 schools identified in the SAFE initiative had now been provided with safe and appropriate sanitation facilities.
The milestone comes years after the deaths of pupils including Michael Komape, Lumka Mkhethwa and Langalam Viki, who died in pit toilet tragedies that sparked national outrage.
Gwarube, however, stressed that the announcement does not mean every pit toilet in South Africa has been eradicated.
“Today’s announcement confirms the successful completion of the backlog identified through the 2018 SAFE Initiative audit. It does not suggest that every pit toilet in the country has disappeared.”
She says some schools developed sanitation challenges after the original audit; others may have been unintentionally omitted, while some communities have chosen to retain old pit toilet structures despite receiving new facilities.
The Minister stressed that provincial education departments must now identify and address any remaining sanitation challenges with urgency.
While celebrating this significant national milestone, the Minister noted that South Africa continues to face a broader school infrastructure backlog exceeding R120 billion, with many schools still requiring classrooms, libraries, laboratories, fencing and other essential facilities.
She also warned that natural disasters, vandalism and constrained provincial budgets are placing growing pressure on infrastructure delivery.
The Minister emphasised that the completion of the SAFE Initiative must now be protected through proper maintenance, community ownership and provincial oversight, so that the facilities built through this programme remain safe, clean and functional.
She further called on communities to protect school infrastructure, reminding South Africans that every classroom, sanitation facility and school preserved is an investment in the community’s future.