Response to the Bangladesh-Myanmar Rohingya humanitarian crisis

Close to a million Rohingya people have fled violence in Myanmar to seek refuge across the border in Bangladesh. Around 688,000 Rohingya refugees have arrived in Bangladesh’s south-eastern districts since August 2017, with hundreds more arriving every day. They join hundreds of thousands of Rohingya people already in Bangladesh, living in refugee camps and with local communities.

Photo caption: AHP-funded latrines in Kutupalong Camp, Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. Credit: Tommy Trenchard/Oxfam. Date: February 2018.

Many Rohingya people have arrived with just the clothes on their backs, they require food, clean water and shelter to survive. Above all they need to feel safe. People are living in makeshift tents in overcrowded settlements. Conditions in the camps are inadequate and unhealthy, with overflowing latrines and contaminated water. The camps are largely unlit and dangerous at night – women, girls and boys are vulnerable to abuse, exploitation and trafficking.

Oxfam, with funding provided through the Australian Humanitarian Partnership (AHP), is providing life-saving aid including clean drinking water. Oxfam is installing water points, toilets and showers, and distributing soap and other essential items. So far Oxfam has reached at least 185,000 people. In total this AHP response will reach more than 200,000 people.

Abul*, 10, uses the AHP-funded latrine near his home in Balukhali Camp, Southern Bangladesh. "We used to go far away around the bushes to go to the toilet. At night I went with my friends but I was scared. Now we have a clean latrine next to our house and I’m not scared anymore."

With AHP funds, Oxfam will provide 41,000 people with access to safe water, 75,000 people with equitable access to sanitation facilities and 45,000 people with health awareness campaigns, knowledge products and hygiene materials.

Date of the article: February 2018
* names changed to protect identities

In 2017, Oxfam in partnership with CARE, has received $3 million for their Rohingya response in Bangladesh. The length of the response is November 2017 - October 2018.