United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Representative in Bangladesh Sumbul Rizvi praised Qatar’s huge and continuous support for UNHCR’s efforts to meet the humanitarian needs of Rohingya refugees, especially since the beginning of the waves of displacement in 2017.
In an interview with Qatar News Agency from Dhaka, Bangladesh, Rizvi said that since the refugees’ influx in 2017, contributions from Qatari organizations including Qatar Charity, Qatar Fund for Development, and other humanitarian actors have helped meet critical and lifesaving needs through the provision of core relief items, sanitation facilities, clean water, and site development activities in areas sheltering refugees.
“In 2023, Qatar Charity’s contribution enabled UNHCR to provide shelter materials to over 126,000 refugees for shelter repair and maintenance, during a period that saw multiple fires in the dry season from October to March and strong winds and heavy rains during the monsoon season from June to October,” she adde
d.
In a related context, she pointed out that more than 7,000 Rohingya families received liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) refills, enabling them to meet their monthly cooking needs for ten months. She stressed that the provision of LPG promoted food security, nutrition, and peaceful coexistence in the camps by reducing competition for resources. Notably, it has resulted in the restoration of hundreds of acres of forest land.
The UNHCR Representative emphasized that Qatar is a key partner of UNHCR globally. “For several years, Qatar’s contribution to UNHCR has made possible the provision of health, education, well-being, and housing of refugees in various countries and contexts. This generous support by Qatar is deeply appreciated,” she said.
In 2017, over 750,000 Rohingya women, men, and children fled toward the border with Bangladesh following violent crackdowns in Myanmar.
According to UNHCR’s estimations, Bangladesh hosts nearly 1 million Rohingya refugees in the largest refugee camp in the world, most of
them in Cox’s Bazar district, near the border with Myanmar.
Rizvi said that Rohingya refugees live in temporary shelters in a highly congested camp setting, relying entirely on humanitarian assistance. She noted that Rohingya refugees are highly exposed to weather-related hazards especially cyclones, flooding, and landslides.
She stressed that UNHCR’s approach in Bangladesh is focused on finding solutions for Rohingya refugees, primarily through their eventual voluntary, safe, and sustainable repatriation to Myanmar. “Enhancing the resilience of refugees during displacement is essential for a sustainable return. This also includes the creation of conduce conditions in Rakhine State,” she said.
She stressed that in 2024, key projects and activities in sectors such as health, shelter, water, hygiene, and sanitation are in critical need of enhancement.
She pointed out the multi-agency 2024 Joint Response Plan (JRP) for the Rohingya Humanitarian Crisis that was launched on Mar. 13, indicating that the UN and
its partners are calling on the international community to extend financial support to address the needs of Rohingya refugees and the Bangladeshi communities that are hosting them as the refugee crisis enters its seventh year.
She also noted that the 2024 JRP requests $852.4 million to cover the needs of 1.35 million refugees for food, shelter materials, fuel and energy, cooking items, core protection-related action, access to skills, capacity-building, nutrition challenges, accessible healthcare, and education.
She stressed that there is a need more than ever for international solidarity with Bangladesh regarding the protection of refugees with the escalation of the conflict in Myanmar, pointing to a number of risks and challenges, including the decline in (marked by 33 percent cuts to food assistance in 2023), refugees lack of legal status, climate risks, security inside the camps, among other challenges.
Concluding her interview with QNA, UNHCR Representative renewed her thanks and appreciation to the S
tate of Qatar and its people for the continued support for the Rohingya refugees. She voiced her thanks to the State of Qatar and appreciated the support the refugees received in the camps from the government and people of Qatar, stressing the need to continue that support.
Source: Qatar News Agency
