5/14/2019 10:49:00 AM
Press Announcement - Pit Latrines
Plain pit and bucket latrines are not allowed at schools.
With the death last week of five-year-old Lumka Mketwa and the recent death of five-year-old Michael Komape the time has come to urgently address the issue of poor sanitation.
Plain pit and bucket latrines are not allowed at schools in terms of the norms and standards document. Despite this there are still over 4 000 schools across the country that only have plain pit latrines as toilets. More than 30 schools in the Eastern Cape have no ablution facilities whatsoever.
One of the immediate actions which can be implemented is the use of portable toilets, which is a vital element of disaster management.
“Portable toilets can be provided immediately, making schools and areas where latrine pit still exists much safer,” says Robert Erasmus, Managing Director of Sanitech. “These toilets are not only safe and efficient, but also assist in saving water, which is desperately needed in the country.”
There are and estimated 5mil pit latrines in South Africa, Sanitech had developed a patented Khusela DST unit that can be retrofitted to an existing pit latrine to not only prevent children from falling in to the pits , it prevents the spread of disease, is serviceable and protects the environment from contamination.