Basic Education Director-General, Mr Mathanzima Mweli, and Ms Mataole Ramohapi, Director in the Office of the DG, have been visiting infrastructure projects in the Eastern Cape Province as part of the monitoring and oversight visits to Sanitation Appropriate for Education (SAFE) construction sites to ensure that teachers and learners are exposed to dignified education environments for quality learning.

Ventilated Improved Pit (VIP) toilets are used particularly in the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, and Limpopo Province as upgraded, dry sanitation systems designed to replace dangerous traditional pit toilets, particularly in water-scarce, rural areas as a safe and odour-free alternative. South Africa is a water-scarce country, receiving 40% less rainfall than the global average.

March is National Water Month (NWM), and South Africa will be observing 2026 NWM under the theme: “Water and Gender”, highlighting the critical relationship between water, women and gender equality. National Water Month aims to raise awareness about the importance of water and to advocate for the sustainable management and protection of the country’s resources. Access to water, and safe, clean drinking water in particular, is a fundamental human right and essential to life.