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In the lead-up to the annual World Toilet Day on Tuesday – 19 November 2024, Water and Sanitation Minister Pemmy Majodina handed over newly completed sanitation facilities to indigent households in Ngobi Village, Moretele Local Municipality, on Sunday, 17 November 2024.
The facilities, part of the R50 million Rural Sanitation Project, aim to provide dignified and sustainable sanitation solutions to vulnerable communities. The initiative, funded by the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS), supports the municipality’s constitutional responsibility to ensure access to adequate sanitation.
Minister Majodina handed over Ventilated Improved Pit (VIP) toilets to families with special needs, including households with elderly members and persons with disabilities. These eco-friendly toilets, which do not require water to function, offer a practical solution in South Africa, a country facing significant water scarcity
The Moretele Municipality, through the DWS’s Water Services Infrastructure Grant (WSIG), has constructed 1,865 VIP toilets across Ward 1 (Phidile Village), Ward 6 (Swaartdam Village), and Ward 7 (Ngobi Village). The project, implemented over two financial years (2023/24 and 2024/25), seeks to address the region’s sanitation backlog and improve the lives of its residents.
Minister Majodina highlighted the importance of the initiative during her engagement with the community, emphasizing the government’s commitment to providing essential services.
“Through our infrastructure programme, we are dedicated to supporting Water Services Authorities to ensure access to water and sanitation services. This project underscores our commitment to restoring dignity to residents and focusing on the needs of women, girls, and vulnerable groups, as outlined in Sustainable Development Goal 6.2,” said the Minister.
While waterborne sanitation remains an aspiration for many communities, VIP toilets present a safe and sustainable alternative, particularly in areas facing geographical, resource, and infrastructural constraints.
The DWS has developed a National Sanitation Integrated Plan (NSIP), a 10-year roadmap to eradicate open defecation, promote innovative solutions, and improve access to sanitation nationwide. South Africa is also a signatory to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, including Goal 6.2, which targets equitable sanitation and hygiene for all by 2030.
As the world observes World Toilet Day under the theme “Toilet – A Place for Peace,” the focus is on ensuring sanitation services are resilient, sustainable, and accessible, even amidst conflict, climate change, and disasters. The theme underscores the need for more investment and improved governance in sanitation to build a fairer, more peaceful world.
Since 1994, South Africa has made significant strides in addressing sanitation backlogs, with the percentage of households accessing improved sanitation increasing from 61.7% in 2002 to 84.1% in 2021. The Eastern Cape and Limpopo provinces have shown the most notable improvements.
Despite this progress, challenges persist. Approximately 15.9% of households, equivalent to 2.8 million households, still lack improved sanitation services, and 1% continue to practice open defecation. The government remains committed to eradicating these disparities and ensuring universal access to sanitation.
World Toilet Day serves as a reminder of the critical need for dignified sanitation for all and the role it plays in fostering equity and peace globally.
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