Another child dies in a pit toilet in South Africa

The South African Police Service (SAPS) in Hlanganani, Limpopo, has registered an inquest docket following the death of a six-year-old girl.

The girl was found floating in a pit toilet in the Nkuzana village on Friday, 02 January 2026.

According to a brief statement by the SAPS, it is alleged that a group of children was playing outside when the victim suddenly vanished from their sight.

“Moments later, her mother noticed that the daughter had disappeared, and a massive search was immediately launched until she was discovered floating inside a toilet pit,” said the SAPS.

The girl was taken out from the pit and rushed to a medical centre, but she was certified dead on arrival.

Acting Provincial Commissioner of Police in Limpopo, Major General Jan Scheepers, has warned communities to always be aware of their children’s whereabouts to prevent similar incidents. 

Police investigations are continuing.

South Africa’s pit toilet crisis

A pit toilet is a low-cost sanitation system that collects human waste in a hole in the ground.

However, it poses serious health and safety risks, including disease transmission, contamination of water sources, foul odors, and the danger of children falling in.

In South Africa, their continued use in the democratic era reflects the legacy of apartheid-era spatial planning, ongoing socioeconomic inequality, inadequate infrastructure investment, and, critically, persistent failures in governance and service delivery.

Plain pit toilets have been banned in South African schools by law since the Minimum Uniform Norms and Standards for Public School Infrastructure were introduced in 2013.

The law required their removal, initially by 2016. 

However, despite this legal ban and various deadlines set by the government, the physical elimination of all pit toilets in schools has been repeatedly delayed and is still incomplete.

According to a Parliamentary response by Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube in late 2025, there are still around 590 schools nationally that rely on pit toilets.

Gwarube said that the provisioning and maintenance of public school infrastructure, including sanitation facilities, remains the responsibility of provincial governments.

“The Department of Basic Education’s role is to provide national coordination, policy development, technical support and oversight.”

The Minister said that while South Africa has made significant progress in replacing unsafe pit latrines through the SAFE initiative, work remains to ensure all public schools have safe sanitation.

She stated that the Department, in collaboration with provincial education departments and implementing agents, has supported at least 98% of schools identified under the SAFE programme.

The remaining projects are expected to be completed by the end of this financial year.

Challenges in some provinces, including procurement delays, contractor underperformance and adverse conditions, are being addressed through contract reallocation and strengthened oversight.

However, critics say that the bigger problem is that they have not yet counted or investigated new pit toilets built after the 2018 audit.

Section 27 organisation attorney Thato Gaffane disputes the 98% figure given by the department, saying there is much more work that needs to be done.

“We don’t feel it is an accurate reflection of what’s happening on the ground. The realities we see in schools tell a different story from the numbers and the data the department says they have,” Gaffane said

Amnesty International has urged the South African government to make the eradication of pit toilets a priority that must be fulfilled.

“These illegal pit toilets are not only violating the right to sanitation which is enshrined in the Constitution, but also the right to health, education, dignity, and privacy whilst… posing a serious risk to the right to life,” said the organisation.