How Community-Led Sanitation is Changing Rural South Africa

In South Africa’s rural communities, something powerful is happening, not with loud announcements or flashy campaigns, but through the steady construction of dignity. Where pit latrines once stood as symbols of neglect, sustainable sanitation facilities are being built, maintained, and owned by the very people who use them. Organisations like The Mvula Trust have been instrumental in shifting the narrative from donor-led delivery to community-owned infrastructure.

While government policy and funding are critical, the key to lasting impact lies in grassroots ownership. In 2025, as South Africa continues to address historic service delivery gaps in water and sanitation, it’s clear that empowering communities is not just a strategic choice, it’s a moral one.

The State of Sanitation in Rural South Africa

Despite notable progress since the dawn of democracy, sanitation remains one of rural South Africa’s most pressing developmental challenges. According to the Department of Basic Education’s 2024 data, over 2,300 public schools, most of them in rural provinces like Limpopo, Eastern Cape, and KwaZulu-Natal, still rely on outdated and unsafe pit latrines.

While the Accelerated School Infrastructure Delivery Initiative (ASIDI) and the Sanitation Appropriate for Education (SAFE) programme have delivered thousands of new toilet blocks since 2018, infrastructure delivery alone is not enough. Maintenance is often overlooked, local skills are underutilised, and facilities fall into disrepair due to a lack of ownership.

This is where community-led models, like those championed by The Mvula Trust, step in to fill a crucial gap.

For over 30 years, The Mvula Trust has led the way in demonstrating how rural development can thrive when communities are placed at the centre. Rather than outsourcing projects to distant contractors, Mvula’s model focuses on participatory planning, community-based project management, and the development of local supply chains.

The principle is simple but transformative, when people build and maintain their own infrastructure, they are far more likely to protect it. Local labour, trained and paid through public employment programmes, is used to construct and maintain toilets. Community members form sanitation committees responsible for overseeing functionality and cleanliness.

This not only enhances sustainability, it also promotes local economic activity, reduces vandalism, and deepens civic engagement. Sanitation stops being a service and becomes a source of pride.

Empowering Women Through Sanitation Access

While poor sanitation affects entire communities, the burden falls disproportionately on women and girls. In many rural areas, a lack of safe, private toilets exposes women to risks of sexual violence, restricts their mobility, and forces them to travel long distances, often before dawn or after dark.

In schools, the consequences are especially dire. Girls frequently miss classes during their menstrual cycle due to a lack of clean facilities and privacy. This not only undermines their education but also reinforces gender inequality.

Community-led sanitation interventions, especially when they include women in decision-making, can reverse these trends. The Mvula Trust ensures that women hold leadership positions in sanitation committees, participate in construction and maintenance training, and help design facilities that meet their specific needs. In doing so, sanitation becomes a tool not just for health, but for gender equity and empowerment.

In the past year alone, The Mvula Trust has launched or completed multiple sanitation projects across provinces. Highlights from 2024–2025 include:

• Limpopo Sanitation Rollout: Over 180 toilets constructed across 53 schools, with 92% of labour sourced locally. Post-completion audits showed a 98% functionality rate after six months.

• KwaZulu-Natal Women Builders Initiative: A pilot programme that trained 50 rural women in basic construction and sanitation system maintenance. The success of the programme has led to its expansion in 2025.

• Eastern Cape School Hygiene Clubs: Partnering with local NGOs, Mvula established student-led clubs promoting toilet care, handwashing, and environmental awareness.

Each of these interventions demonstrates that scale does not have to sacrifice sustainability, when projects are community-owned and context-sensitive, the results last.

Policy Partnerships, Working with DBE, DWS, and Municipalities

Mvula’s success would not be possible without alignment with government policy and public investment. The organisation works closely with the Department of Basic Education (DBE), Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS), and local municipalities to ensure compliance with regulations and effective resource use.

At the same time, Mvula advocates for policy reforms that prioritise maintenance budgets, simplify procurement for rural projects, and expand support for community-based organisations delivering infrastructure. In 2025, Mvula has been invited to consult on the National Sanitation Policy Review, a sign of its growing influence on strategic direction.

By positioning communities as co-developers, not just beneficiaries, Mvula is helping shift national attitudes toward participatory governance and inclusive delivery.

Sanitation is not just about toilets, it’s about dignity, safety, education, and empowerment. In rural South Africa, where legacies of marginalisation still shape daily life, access to a clean, safe toilet is nothing short of transformative.

The Mvula Trust’s model shows that infrastructure becomes more than brick and mortar when built by the hands of the community. It becomes an investment in resilience. A symbol of shared responsibility. And above all, a marker of progress rooted not in charity, but in collaboration.

As the country continues its journey toward universal access, the lesson is clear, sanitation that is owned is sanitation that endures.