The European Commission has released €10m in EU humanitarian support for Rohingya refugees and host communities in Bangladesh.
The Cox’s Bazar region in Bangladesh currently hosts nearly a million Rohingya Muslims who have fled attempted genocide in the Burmese state of Northern Rakhine; and who are now wholly dependent on humanitarian aid. Since the Rohingya crisis began in 2017, the EU has allocated support worth more than €140m for Rohingya populations both in Rakhine and Cox’s Bazar, comprising refugees who have fled Myanmar entirely, those who have been internally displaced; the 600,000 Rohingya remaining in Rakhine, who are still subject to fundamental rights restrictions and state-sanctioned violence; and Bangladeshi communities hosting refugees.
The new tranche of funding, announced last week, brought the EU’s total support for the Rohingya crisis through 2019 to €43m. Aid will be concentrated on lifesaving measures including:
- Food and nutrition support for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh, who have seen a drop in living conditions in recent months;
- Access to quality healthcare services for Rohingya living in Bangladesh;
- Nutrition support for internally displaced Rohingya who are still in Myanmar; and
- Protection services for Rohingya in Rakhine, where violence escalated in 2019.
Janez Lenarčič, the EU’s Commissioner for Crisis Management, said: “The EU’s support has helped save countless lives over the last two years since the crisis began, but cannot stop now as hundreds of thousands of Rohingya rely on humanitarian aid to survive. Today’s additional funding is another clear sign that the EU remains committed to stand by the side of the Rohingya for as long as it takes. We will continue to support both refugees and host communities in Cox’s Bazar, as well as the vulnerable Rohingya people left in Myanmar. At the same time, the EU continues to work to secure the conditions for the safe, dignified and sustainable return of the Rohingya to Myanmar.”
