Masvingo School Crisis: 136 Pupils Share One Toilet as Infrastructure Collapses

HARARE – A government-run primary school in Masvingo District is facing a deepening health and humanitarian crisis, with 136 pupils and four teachers forced to share a single squat toilet amid collapsing infrastructure. At Chikwanda Primary School, learners and staff are reportedly resorting to bush toilets due to inadequate sanitation, raising serious public health concerns.

According to the Masvingo Mirror, the situation has been worsened by workers from a nearby brick-moulding company who are also using the same facility. Chikwanda School Development Committee chairperson Samuel Mabwazvike confirmed the crisis.

“We have challenges, but the biggest is with toilets. We have one toilet shared by pupils, teachers, and workers from Matuke’s brick moulding company,” he said.

The company is allegedly linked to Lovemore Matuke, Zimbabwe’s Minister of State Security.

Mabwazvike said that although 10 additional squat holes have been drilled, they are not yet functional.

Beyond sanitation, the school’s infrastructure has been described as dangerously dilapidated.

Classrooms reportedly converted from an old homestead have cracked walls, collapsing roofs, damaged floors, and broken windows. Teachers dismiss pupils at the first sign of rain for fear of structural collapse.

“The classroom block that is collapsing poses a serious risk to our students,” Mabwazvike said.

The school is severely understaffed, with just three teachers handling nine classes from ECD B to Grade 7. One teacher reportedly manages ECD A, ECD B, and Grade 1 simultaneously, while another handles both Grade 2 and Grade 3. Teachers also face accommodation challenges. Most commute daily from Masvingo at a cost of around US$8, while one married teacher shares overcrowded housing with workers from the nearby brick company.

Parents have expressed alarm over the sharing of toilet facilities between adult male workers and young children.

“We are not happy at all with a situation where men are using the same toilets with ECD and Grade 1 girls,” said one parent, speaking anonymously for fear of victimisation.

Torerai Moyo, the Minister of Primary and Secondary Education, acknowledged that the government is aware of infrastructure challenges in some schools and pointed to budget allocations in the 2026 national budget. However, education officials say no meaningful funding has reached schools in recent years beyond salaries.

Masvingo North MP Brian Mudhumi has pledged to donate cement for toilet construction, while Matuke reportedly committed to providing bricks. Education unions say more systemic action is needed. Takavafira Zhou of the Progressive Teachers’ Union of Zimbabwe urged authorities to urgently assess and rehabilitate schools with failing infrastructure. Meanwhile, Obert Masaraure argued that the crisis reflects long-standing policy failures.

“The infrastructure deficit should have been resolved through mechanisms like the education equalisation fund recommended by the Nziramasanga Commission,” he said.

The situation at Chikwanda Primary highlights broader challenges facing Zimbabwe’s rural education system, where inadequate funding, infrastructure decay, and overcrowding continue to compromise learning conditions. Experts warn that without urgent intervention, the health, safety, and educational outcomes of vulnerable learners remain at risk.

Masvingo school crisis