Amnesty International demands justice for Unecebo Mboteni after he died in pit toilet at his ECD centre

Amnesty International South Africa has renewed its call for justice for three-year-old Unecebo Mboteni, who died after allegedly falling into a pit toilet at his pre-school in the Eastern Cape.

The tragic incident occurred in April last year at the boy's early childhood development (ECD) centre in Mdantsane.

The non-governmental organisation (NGO) said it was outrageous that the Department of Basic Education (DBE) and the day care centre had yet to take responsibility for the tragedy.

"It's incredibly concerning that the department still hasn't met its own deadline to remove pit toilets when we know how severe the consequences are of children as young as 3 using these toilets."

The oversight of ECD centres was officially migrated from the Department of Social Development to the DBE in April 2022.

Earlier this year, the department, under Minister Siviwe Gwarube, announced that it had successfully eradicated 96% of pit toilets identified under the 2018 Sanitation Appropriate for Education (SAFE) initiative.

However, according to Amnesty International South Africa, a year later, Unecebo’ parents were still not sure if the pit toilet he was found in had even been removed.

The organisation's programme and impact manager, Alicia Jooste, expressed her serious concern over the lack of progress.

"Unecebo is the third child to be found in a pit toilet in the Eastern Cape since 2018," Jooste stated. "It's incredibly concerning that the department still hasn't met its own deadline to remove pit toilets when we know how severe the consequences are of children as young as 3 using these toilets."

EWN has reached out to the Department of Basic Education for comment and is awaiting their response.