AT the back of the United Nations awareness campaign for World Toilet Day, annually observed on November 19, the eThekwini’s executive committee (EXCO) has resolved to spend R37 million to reduce the number of pit toilets within the municipality.

A special sitting of EXCO was convened on Friday (November 29) to discuss the ongoing sanitation crisis within eThekwini which was followed by a Full Council Meeting on Monday to seek final approval for the project. According to the report table before EXCO, it is estimated that over 50 000 households require on-site sanitation throughout the municipal area.

The City is battling to meet demand with rapid urbanisation putting the municipality under pressure alongside the growing number of informal settlements. Municipal spokesperson Gugu Sisilana said that with 67% of eThekwini being rural in nature, this leads to pressure on the City for improved services of an urban nature, hence the need for better sanitation technology.

Also Read: World Toilet Day shines spotlight on pit toilets

She said that most rural areas are currently served with informal VIP structures which were damaged in heavy rainfall and flood disasters, negatively affecting the health and safety of communities. “The project will be applied to formal houses built by Human Settlements with no sanitation facilities due to lack of bulk sewer infrastructure; existing households with dilapidated toilet infrastructure or no toilet facilities; and where deemed necessary, conversion of the Urine Diversion and VIP toilet structures to approved alternative solutions,” added Sisilana.

The project designed to eradicate pit toilets will run over a 36-month period. The work will entail a six-month pilot phase which will include an assessment of the performance of the installed solutions. “The assessment will include technical, environmental, social and economic considerations. The second phase will include the full implementation of the project,” said Sisilana.

According to Stats SA’s Census 2022, the percentage of households that used a pit toilet without ventilation and households with no form of toilet facility has declined, from 22.8% to 12.5% and from 13.6% to 1.6% respectively. Although 58.9% of households in KwaZulu-Natal use flush toilets, 28.5% use pit latrines with/without ventilation pipes and 7% use chemical toilets.

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