NHLANGANO – People at Mathendele township have redefined the concept of breaking-in, as they no longer break into houses, but into pit latrines.

This highlights the desperate struggle for proper sanitation in this informal settlement, which is about two kilometres from Nhlangano town.

It must be said that this unsettling situation paints a grim picture of life in the largest informal settlement from the country’s southern town, which is sitting on a ticking-time bomb health-wise, due to a lack of proper sanitation.

The location has suffered for over 40 years of conspicuous neglect, with its inhabitants struggling with access to clean water, toilets, proper drainage systems and proper house planning.

Thembi Mwelase, aged 64, who has been living in the area for over 10 years, revealed that a practice of breaking into other people’s toilets has become common because many stands have no toilets of their own.

This, in turn, is gradually leading to a misunderstanding as tensions escalate on a daily basis because of revenge by the victims of the ‘break-ins’.

“The clash is real, as a majority of people who live in rented flats without toilets have become ‘toilet burglars’, waiting for night to fall just to sneak into other people’s toilets. In retaliation, toilet owners have become fiercely territorial as they fight back to defend their toilets from unwelcome users,” Mwelase stated.

As Mwelase sat in the scorching sun on Tuesday while handcrafting a cosy chicken nest for hens to lay their eggs, which she said was a source of her living, she added that the situation has deteriorated to unimaginable levels, posing high health risks for waterborne diseases. She said it was no longer fit for human occupation, with open defecation having been normalised by both children and adults.

Her statement was testament to a scene that greeted the news team upon arrival, as a little boy was found half naked, answering the call of nature next to a pit latrine made of old, worn-out green netting, resembling mosquito nets.

Mwelase, who was with her eldest daughter outside their rented flat, said their life was so degrading to both their dignity and self-worth.

Added to this was the invention of a new ‘in-house toilet’, known as the bucket system, which she said was used by almost everyone who lives in a stand where there were no toilets.

 “The bucket system has become synonymous with almost everyone who, like us, does not have a toilet. We use it mostly during the night, but also during the day when it’s impossible to sneak into other people’s toilets.

“First thing in the morning, everyone wakes up to empty their buckets in the passing stream, which unfortunately is a gross inconsideration for some of the people who use the water for consumption purposes,” she added.

Mwelase, who was visibly emotional about their plight, said they also dig small holes with shovels when pressed, and later refill them after relieving themselves. She mentioned common incidents where human waste would be found along the township’s small dusty roads or paths, and sometimes next to their flats, making their yards and houses teem with flies.

She stated as a matter of fact that their health was at jeopardy arising from the fact that open defecation has become the viable option for people of every age in the absence of toilets.

Mwelase, who also suffers the pain and struggles of renting in a stand with no toilets, stated that they were also forced to sneak and break into other people’s toilets in the still of the night to relieve themselves.

Detailing how the whole community of over 450 households was being affected, Sakhile Sithole, aged 32, born in the same area, said their situation was never without financial implications.

She said on average, each family was spending nearly E5 for toilet use in town in an attempt to avoid open defecation.

This equates to E35 weekly and E140 monthly.

She said these numbers were based on the fact that each one-room flat usually houses at least four people, which she said was the reason there was overcrowding in the area.

A walk around the area revealed pit latrines constructed out of discarded materials such as old road sign boards, plastic sacks, old discarded sleeping blankets and cupboards.

The visited pit latrines were shallow in depth, and residents who spoke to this publication stated that they filled up quickly, forcing them to use the bucket system.

Sithole said there were many flats without toilets, and even those with toilets are not fit for usage.

They quickly fill up and the health department discourages the building of such toilets.

As the rainy season approaches, Sithole said the place would become terribly filthy with human waste being washed away along the paths, small roads and their compounds.

She also confirmed that the passing stream next to the road from kaMjuda T-Junction to Mahamba Border Gate was also used by some tenants for consumption purposes, especially those who cannot afford to pay the water bills.

She said the place suffers from deep poverty as seen through the presence of stick-and-mud houses, contributing to their miserable lives.

She said this was due to the town’s small economy since there were few companies and firms in the region. Sithole stated that dwellers were working either in textile factories or retail outlets, bringing home meagre salaries of not more than E2 000, which further compounds their situation.

Mwelase, speaking about many other issues affecting the place, said there was a need for the town council to overhaul the place and introduce proper house planning. She said as things were, it was hard to even introduce developments because of the haphazard planning and congestion.

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Government engages contractor to build toilets

MBABANE – Communications Officer Nsindiso Tsabedze from the Ministry of Health says the long wait for improved sanitation will be a thing of the past.

He was contacted about the living conditions at Mathendele.

Tsabedze confirmed that construction of ventilated improved pit (VIP) toilets is underway.

This forms part of the Water, Sanitation and Hygiene programmes or initiatives in many parts of the southern region.

It comprises 10 000 toilets across rural and peri-urban areas. According to the ministry, a contractor has already been engaged to build sanitation facilities in informal settlements under the jurisdiction of Hlatikhulu and Nhlangano.

Tsabedze mentioned that the project was targeting 713 households, with 448 earmarked for Nhlangano and 265 for Hlatikhulu.

Work has begun in several settlements, and so far, 94 toilets have been completed, with 68 at Mangwaneni, 18 at Harpist and eight at Kamdodi.

Confirming what was shared by Thembi Mwelase and Sakhile Sithole, both from Mathendele, the mouthpiece also shared that digging of pits has already commenced, and residents can expect the project to be completed by January 2026.

“We are working closely with the contractor to ensure timely completion of the project, which is expected to be done in January 2026,” the ministry assured.

*Full article available in our publication.