Question NW1975 to the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education
02 September 2021 - NW1975
Ngcobo, Mr SL to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education
(1) With reference to (a) Micheal Komape and (b) Siyamthanda Mtunu, aged five and six years respectively, who died due to unsafe and dilapidated pit toilets that are reported mostly in Limpopo, what measures has her department taken to ensure that the Limpopo Department of Education eradicates unsafe and unhygienic toilets at rural schools as ordered by the courts; (2) what specific initiatives have been implemented to ensure the safety of children since 2018 when the matter of unsafe and unhygienic toilets was heard in the High Court; (3) what immediate interventions will ensure that parents in the rural areas do not continue to lose their children to unsafe toilets between now and 2026 when the eradication of pit toilets is planned to commence?
Reply:
1. The SAFE (Sanitation Appropriate For Education) programme was launched to eradicate BASIC PIT toilets. Countrywide, there are currently 2 913 schools on this programme. 1 159 of these 2 913 schools, appropriate toilets have already been constructed. In Limpopo, there are 455 schools that form part of the SAFE programme. Of these 455, 170 projects have already progressed to Practical Completion.
2. There are 2 initiatives related to BASIC PIT toilets to ensure the safety of children. The first is to build appropriate toilets at schools (see progress reported above). The second is to demolish the old BASIC PIT toilet structures. This second initiative is driven by the Provincial Departments of Education. For example, in Limpopo there are 239 schools that have appropriate toilets, but the old BASIC PIT structures were still on site. At 86 of these 239, contractors have been appointed and the old BASIC PIT toilets have been demolished.
3. The eradication of BASIC PIT toilets has already commenced with progress as indicated above