Home ›› 25 Aug 2022 ›› Front
Five years have gone by since hundreds of thousands of Rohingya – forcibly displaced Myanmar citizens – left their homeland following a bloody military crackdown, and entered Bangladesh in a desperate bid for survival.
The repatriation of Rohingya to Myanmar is yet to begin despite the best efforts of Bangladesh, while the dwindling aid from the international community continues to cast a shadow of doubt on how long Bangladesh will be able to shoulder this burden.
Bangladesh’s friends and neighbouring countries – and the global community at large – still limits their activities in the matter to only assurances, and Myanmar has yet to face any serious pressure regarding Rohingya repatriation.
Sounding a note of caution, the United Nations (UN) recently stated that the refugees are already facing many challenges in their daily lives due to decreased funding.
A number of experts say the Bangladesh government, expatriates and NGOs (non-government organisations) have failed to raise a strong voice globally to pressure Myanmar into repatriating the Rohingya, and collect enough funds to support them.
According to the UN, about 1.2 million Rohingya live in refugee camps in the Cox’s Bazar region and at the Bhasan Char shelter centre.
Speaking to The Business Post, Dhaka University’s International Relations Department Professor Imtiaz Ahmed said, “The issue has been put under the table as time passed, because the matter failed to achieve priority from the international community.
“Many Rohingya are scattered in different countries, but they also failed to raise their voice. This is why the repatriation issue is facing a long delay, and support from the international community is declining.”
Professor Imtiaz recommended the Bangladesh government and NGOs to raise their voice to get the global community’s attention, which will help them collect more funds. “The NGOs think they would be able to get funding for Rohingya with ease, but branding is necessary.”
Mentioning that the US recently termed the Myanmar military crackdown genocide and the International Court of Justice (ICJ) rejected Myanmar’s objection on this matter, he said, “Bangladesh and Rohingyas should use this opportunity to create a pressure for repatriation.
“The government may appoint someone to achieve this goal.”
Violence broke out in Myanmar’s Rakhine State on August 25, 2017, driving more than 7,42,000 to seek refuge in Bangladesh. An estimated 12,000 reached Bangladesh during the first half of 2018.
The vast majority reaching Bangladesh are women and children, and more than 40 per cent are under the age of 12 years. Many others are elderly people requiring additional aid and protection. They had nothing and needed everything.
NGO funds dwindle with time
In 2017, when hundreds of thousands of Rohingya fled to Bangladesh, the international community opened their purses to provide aid. They came to Bangladesh or appointed representatives with funds, food and other types of support.
But as the years passed, activities of international communities gradually waned and their focus shifted to other issues.
Data from the NGO Affairs Bureau show that since the Rohingya influx began, Bangladesh received Tk 4,881 crore in international funds for the Cox Bazar shelter centre through 227 local and foreign NGOs.
In the first 34 months, Bangladesh received Tk 3,331 crore or on average Tk 98 crore monthly. However, in the 25-month period between July 2020 and July 2022, the NGOs received Tk 1,660 crore or Tk 66 crore on average per month – which is only two thirds of the 34-month average.
The NGO bureau does not have FY data, but The Business Post managed to collect FY18-FY20 data from different stakeholders. This data shows that in FY18, the bureau disbursed Tk 1,314 crore of foreign funds to NGOs for Rohingya refugees, which later dropped to Tk 1,212 in FY19.
In FY20, the country received Tk 805 crore, while in the first four months of FY21, the received amount was Tk 110 crore. Besides, 43 NGOs collected Tk 125 crore in foreign funds for Bhasan Char shelter centre from November 2020 to July 2022.
The data clearly indicates that foreign aid for the forcibly displaced Myanmar citizens stranded in Bangladesh is steadily declining.
UN too facing fund shortage for Rohingya
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has been providing aid support to Rohingyas ever since they escaped from Myanmar to Bangladesh in droves.
The Bangladesh government bears logistic support, while the UNHCR funds food, shelter, health, education, skill development, and other necessary support. It has been doing this work through 136 organisations including UN agencies, and national and international bodies.
But since last year, the UNHCR failed to collect enough funds to support them, making the lives of Rohingyas tougher and tougher as the days pass by.
On August 23, the UNHCR stated over a million Rohingya in Bangladesh are living in extremely overcrowded areas, and they remain fully reliant on humanitarian assistance for their survival. They face many challenges in their daily lives due to decreased funding.
The UNHCR data shows that in 2021, the agency planned to collect $943 million as aid for the Rohingyas, but it managed to collect only $674 million after the end of the year – 72 per cent of the target.
They planned to collect $881 million for 2022. Eight months have gone already, but the agency has been able to collect only 49 per cent or $426.2 million till date.
Multiple humanitarian assessment surveys have found that the most commonly unmet needs include proper nutrition, shelter materials, sanitation facilities and livelihood opportunities. Some have resorted to dangerous boat journeys to seek a better future, the UNHCR said.
‘Rohingya issue must remain an int’l priority’
The European Commission recently stated that addressing the root causes of the protracted crisis, including the systematic abuses suffered by the hundreds of thousands of Rohingya remaining in Rakhine State, must remain an international priority.
“In this regard, the European Union (EU) fully supports the work of the International Court of Justice,” said European Commission High Representative Josep Borrell, Commissioner Janez Lenarcic and Commissioner Jutta Urpilainen on the 5th anniversary of the Rohingya crisis.
The EU continues to advocate for the “safe, sustainable, dignified, and voluntary” return of the Rohingya refugees to their places of origin. However, there
