United Nations refugee agency chief, Filippo Grandi is set to present a humanitarian plan being spearheaded by Bangladesh to raise 852.4 million dollars to help some 1.35 million people including Rohingya refugees and host communities, UNHCR said in a statement on Wednesday.
The 2024 Joint Response plan for the Rohingya Humanitarian Crisis is being unveiled to donors in Geneva by Grandi, by Bangladesh's ambassador Masud Bin Momen and its foreign secretary Mohammad Tofazzel Hossain Miah, and the UN's International Organization for Migration chief Amy Pope, the statement said.
"International solidarity with Bangladesh and its refugee protection is needed more than ever as the conflict in Myanmar escalates," the statement underlined.
Some 95 per cent of Rohingya families in Bangladesh are struggling to survive in vulnerable conditions in crowded camps and remain dependent on humanitarian aid as their plight risks "slipping into obscurity," the statement noted.
Continuing aid is desperately needed, especially by women and children, who make up over 75 percent of the target refugee population, and face heightened risks of abuse, exploitation and gender-based violence, according to UNHCR.
Over 500,000 Rohingya minors "languishing" in refugee camps in Bangladesh are of particular concern, UNHCR stated.
"More than half of refugees in the camps are under 18 and are languishing amidst limited opportunities for education, skills-building and livelihoods," said the statement.
"The government of Bangladesh, local communities and aid agencies need sustained international support to respond to increasing needs as this humanitarian crisis remainsl argely out of the international spotlight."
Rohingya refugees, most of whom fled violence in Myanmar 7 years ago "remain in limbo" and rely on humanitarian assistance to survive "in crowded camps plagued by insecurity and natural disasters," the statement said.
The 2024 Joint Response Plan brings together 117 partners, nearly half of them Bangladeshi organisations, and aims to help around a million Rohingya refugees in Cox’s Bazar and on the island of Bhasan Char, as well as 346,000 from host communities. The vital humanitarian aid consists in food, shelter, health care, access to drinkable water, protection services, education and livelihood opportunities and skills development.
