YESTERDAY was World Toilet Day.
Unfortunately, about 4,5 billion people around the world don’t have access to a proper toilet.
In South Africa, 1,7 million residents are still without access to proper sanitation.
According to Statistics South Africa, the number of households in the country without sanitation or who used the bucket toilet system decreased from 12,6% to 3,1% between 2002 and 2017.
While that is commendable, it means nothing to people like Velma Mukhari (27) from Stjwetla in Alexandra, north of Joburg.
Velma, who is eight months pregnant, is forced to share nine pit toilets with hundreds of other residents.
“This area is a living hell. You can’t just go to the toilet – it takes a lot of planning,” said Velma.
“Going to the toilet during the day is dehumanising. The entire community is watching you.
“At night it’s not safe at all and you have to find someone to accompany you.
“If you are a woman and you live alone, you have to ask God to accompany you.
“Children are the most vulnerable. They aren’t allowed to go to the toilets without adult supervision.”
Children aren’t just vulnerable in their kasis, as many schools aren’t safe either.
Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga previously admitted that almost 4 000 schools in the country still depend on pit toilets.
In 2014, Michael Komape (5) died after he fell into a pit toilet at his school in Limpopo.
Earlier this year, grade R pupil Lumka Mkhethwa (5) died after drowning in a pit toilet at her school in the Eastern Cape.
The department of water and sanitation promised to put an end to the bucket system by 2030.
