Fig. 1.

According to a 2019 joint report by United Nation Children’s Fund and the World Health Origination, there are 673 million people still defecating in the open and 1.3 billion people using limited or unimproved sanitation facilities (UNICEF and WHO 2019). Open defecation and the widespread usage of squat toilets pose additional risks on the transmission of COVID-19 and other fecal pathogens in developing communities. The practice of open defecation enables several potential pathways to transmit COVID-19 in these communities. Since squatting toilets typically have an open design with no lid or built-in U-trap, users may be easily exposed to virus-laden splashes and bioaerosols in the ambient air or surrounding surfaces when using squat toilets during the COVID-19 pandemic. The semi-enclosed space of squat toilets and lower breathing zone of users could exacerbate these risks