How students are holding government to account for the pit toilet crisis
April 2025
Too many schools in South Africa still rely on dangerous and unhygienic pit latrines—but a growing movement of Equal Education student activists is refusing to accept inadequate facilities.
What is the problem?
Even after multiple children have died or have been seriously injured after falling into pit toilets, the Department of Education has repeatedly failed to meet its own deadlines to eradicate pit toilets and provide safe and dignified sanitation for schools.
How are they solving it?
Students at schools with inadequate sanitation infrastructure are leading the fight for safe and dignified school toilets as part of Equal Education, a youth-led, mass democratic movement striving for quality education in public schools. Masechaba Ntsane, a junior organiser with Equal Education’s school sanitation campaign in Limpopo, says, “Active membership and pressure from Equal Education, particularly Equalisers, who are our learner members…have ensured that there is movement and proper momentum around ensuring that they get toilets**.”**
For instance, active Equalisers in the Ga-Mashashane village near Polokwane have
successfully agitated for improved sanitation at Matshelana Primary School, Kgolokgotlha Ledwaba Secondary School, Tlakale Mashashane Secondary School and Tutwana Primary School. After years of advocacy, the Limpopo Department of Education has finally replaced pit latrines or mobile toilets and replaced them with dignified, safe facilities.
On a national scale, some important gains have been made – even if progress has been far slower than is acceptable and there is reason to question the validity of the data provided because of outdated audits says Ntsane. According to data from the Department of Education, government has brought the total number of schools solely reliant on pit toilets down from 7438 in 2014 to 287 in 2024.
What made it work?
Youth-led activism. As members of Equal Education, students lead marches, write letters, make submissions to parliamentary portfolio committees and picket the Department of Education to demand urgent sanitation relief for schools that only use plain pit toilets. Ntsane explains that when young people are “able to be empowered and then take ownership of the campaign,” they sustain the pressure necessary to make the government act.
Legislative wins. In 2013, thanks to pressure from Equal Education, the Department of Education passed the Minimum Uniform Norms and Standards for Public School Infrastructure. This includes a minimum number of toilets and the provision of a potable water supply, and provides a concrete framework and timelines with which to hold the government accountable when it fails to provide the necessary infrastructure.
Legal action. In 2018, the public interest law center SECTION27 took legal action on behalf of the parents of five-year-old Michael Komape, who was killed when he fell into a pit toilet at his school in Chebeng village, Limpopo. The ruling in the Limpopo Provincial High Court ordered the government to create a legally binding plan to eliminate all school pit latrines and provide progress reports every six months. These reports help Equalisers monitor governments' promises as students fight for better sanitation.
Community Buy In. Securing the support of the entire community around a school is vital to the success of Equal Education’s sanitation campaigns. Organisers work to help communities see how “The gains of a school automatically become the gains of a community,” says Ntsane. “If the school can get water, then the community is also able to get water.”
The fight to end the pit toilet crisis in South African schools is far from over, but it is being driven forward by the determination of students who refuse to settle for unsafe sanitation at their schools. Their work reminds communities across South Africa that real change can come from persistent pressure, advocacy, and the power of collective action.
Acknowledgements:
Article by: Maru Attwood
Photograph: Dexs1991, Wikimedia Commons
Get your community involved
Is there a community-driven group or caring business in your area? A dedicated group of committed people can effectively solve local problems.
Think about starting or joining community groups like a street WhatsApp group, residents' association, or community policing forum (CPF) to get help and to stay informed and involved in local issues.
Know your rights – how local government works
It’s important to understand how your local government works so that you can work with them to support what they are doing while your community continues to keep them accountable and deliver services on time. Remember you have a constitutional right to many of the services provided by local government, as well as to accountability and transparency, wherever you live and regardless of how much you earn. It is also where money collected from taxes and rates goes.
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