Rohingya Response | Rohingya Response

Seven years since the Rohingya refugee influx in Bangladesh, UNHCR reminds need for international solidarity

As we mark seven years since the large-scale Rohingya refugee arrival, UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, once again calls for sustained commitment from international partners to support the protection of nearly one million Rohingya hosted by Bangladesh, and to help secure solutions for a lasting end to their plight. On 25 August 2017, some 700,000 Rohingya men, women and children were forced to flee Myanmar and seek protection in Bangladesh, joining those who had fled in previous years.

Rice Donation from Republic of Korea Provides a Major Boost to Food Assistance for Rohingya in Bangladesh

The World Food Programme (WFP) has received a significant rice donation from the Republic of Korea (ROK) for its lifesaving assistance for the Rohingya population in Bangladesh. Today, an official handover ceremony of 15,000 MT of rice from ROK was held at WFP’s Maduchara Logistics Hub in Cox’s Bazar.

Monsoon Rains Trigger Deadly Flash Floods and Landslides in Cox’s Bazar Refugee Camps

UN agencies and the entire humanitarian community are deeply saddened by the tragic deaths of 10 people, including at least seven Rohingya refugees, as heavy monsoon rains battered refugee camps in Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar on Tuesday, causing flash floods and landslides.

About the Rohingya Refugee Response

Large-scale forced displacement of the Rohingya — an ethnic, linguistic, and religious minority from Myanmar’s northern Rakhine State — into Bangladesh has occurred in 1978, 1992, 2012, and again in 2016. On all occasions, Bangladesh has generously sheltered Rohingya refugees temporarily. For the most part on previous occasions, the Rohingya have returned to their ancestral home in Rakhine State.

The largest forced displacement from Myanmar into Bangladesh began in August 2017. As of 29 February 2024, 976,507 Rohingya refugees – largely women and children — are residing in thirty-three camps in Ukhiya and Teknaf Upazilas of the Cox’s Bazar District, as well as on the island of Bhasan Char.

Under the leadership of the Government of Bangladesh, the humanitarian response has supported thousands of refugees since August 2017. Today, 117+ partners including 10 UN agencies 107 international and national NGOs are working closely with the Government in supporting one million Rohingya Refugees and half a million Bangladeshi host communities pending a durable solution.

The collective needs of the Rohingya refugee response for the UN and I/NGOs is outlined in the Joint Response Plan, that is issued annually with the support of the Government.

Joint Response Plan

2024 Joint Response Plan: Rohingya Humanitarian Crisis in Bangladesh

Under the leadership of the Bangladesh Government, the 2024 Joint Response Plan (JRP) for the Rohingya Humanitarian Crisis was launched on 13 March. The JRP is developed yearly and is an annual fundraising document and articulates the shared vision of how the humanitarian community will respond to the assessed and expressed needs of Rohingya refugees and affected host communities.

Through the 2024 JRP, the UN and its partners are calling on the international community to extend financial support to address the prioritized needs of Rohingya refugees and the Bangladeshi communities that are hosting them as the refugee crisis enters its seventh year. The 2024 JRP requests $852.4 million to reach 1.35 million people, including Rohingya refugees sheltered in Cox’s Bazar and Bashan Char and Bangladeshi host communities in Ukhiya and Teknaf. The 2024 JRP brings together 117 partners including UN Agencies, Bangladeshi and international NGOs. Nearly half of them are national organizations from Bangladesh.

The 2024 JRP is focusing on five key objectives:

Work towards the sustainable and voluntary repatriation of Rohingya refugees/FDMNs to Myanmar.
Strengthen the protection of Rohingya refugee/FDMN women, men, girls, and boys.
Deliver life-saving assistance to populations in need.
Foster the well-being of host communities.
Strengthen disaster risk management and combat the effects of climate change.

Read 2024 JRP

Read All jrps

1.35 M

People to Assist

$852.4 M

Funding Needed

117

Partners

Sectors in Cox’s Bazar

Education

Food Security

Protection (including CP and GBV)

Health

Shelter - Camp Coordination and Camp Management

Livelihoods and Skills Development

Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene

Nutrition

Response in Bhasan Char

The Government of Bangladesh has established infrastructural facilities on Bhasan Char and supports the humanitarian community to deliver essential services to Rohingya refugees. On 9 October 2021, the Government of Bangladesh and UNHCR (on behalf of the UN agencies) signed an MOU that established a common policy framework based on protection and humanitarian principles for ongoing and future efforts on Bhasan Char. The MOU affirmed a joint commitment to ensure that Rohingya sheltered on Bhasan Char have access to services including protection, shelter, food and nutrition, water, sanitation and hygiene, health, education in the Myanmar curriculum in the Myanmar language, as well as the ability to engage in livelihoods, capacity building activities, and skills development commensurate with opportunities available in Rakhine State in Myanmar. By the end of December 2022, the Government of Bangladesh had facilitated the voluntary relocation of around 30,000 Rohingya refugees to Bhasan Char.

The Rohingya refugee response on Bhasan Char aims to meet the humanitarian and protection needs of the Rohingya. The Rohingya refugee response on Bhasan Char aims to support and complement the work of the Government of Bangladesh, which is leading the overall humanitarian response. The Government in partnership with UN agencies will make best efforts to ensure equity of standards and parity of services for the Rohingya refugees living in Bhasan Char and Cox’s Bazar camps.