Bayakou (trade) (original) (raw)

A bayakou is a sanitation worker who works to empty the fecal sludge out of pit latrines in Haiti, especially in larger cities, such as Port-au-Prince. The word bayakou comes from Haitian Creole. Bayakou are subjected to social stigma for their work in manually emptying septic tanks and pit latrines. The more general term used for this kind of undignified practice, particularly in India, is "manual scavenging". Proper emptying of pit latrines is part of a city-wide fecal sludge management concept.