The United Nations (UN) has urged everyone not to forget the plight of the Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh and help them in returning safely to their homes in Myanmar.
After visiting the Rohingya refugee camps in Bangladesh’s Cox Bazaar area, UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Mark Lowcock expressed his sadness on witnessing the worse living conditions of the refugees and said that their organization was seeking to raise money to help the refugees and their host community.
According to reports, a 20-member delegation of UN organizations including United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and International Organization for Migration (IOM) visited Cox’s Bazar and inspected food distribution centres under World Food Program (WPF) and talked to the refugee women and children.
They also assessed ongoing work to address weather-related risks, including strengthening shelters, improving infrastructure, and training volunteers while recognizing the critical role the refugees themselves are playing in these efforts.
The Head of UNHCR Filippo Grandi claimed that the Rohingya refugee crisis was one of the world’s biggest one as the conditions of most of the Rohingya women and children are quite fragile.
After visiting Cox’s Bazar this trip they noted that almost half of the 540,000 refugee children under the age of 12 are missing out completely on an education, while the remainder are only able to access very limited schooling.
Over one million Rohingya refugees are living in overcrowded refugee camps in southeastern Bangladesh.
Bangladesh’s Foreign Minister A K Momen said that the government is planning to relocate around 100000 Rohingya refugees to Bhashan Char Island before the advent of monsoon season.
However, some human rights groups have expressed concern over this plan as the island is remote and prone to devastation from cyclones.