Bangladesh - Humanitarian Response to the Rohingya Refugee Crisis - ADRA 2019

January 2019 – Following the outbreak of violence in Northern Rakhine State in August 2017 more than 735 000 Rohingya crossed from Myanmar into Bangladesh over a period of several months. These refugees joined some 200 000 to 300 000 Rohingya already in Bangladesh following earlier waves of displacement. The speed and scale of the influx has resulted in significant humanitarian needs. With GAC’s support ADRA is helping to respond to the immediate needs of existing and newly arrived Rohingya refugees in Jamtoli Camp Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh including the specific needs of women and children. Project activities include: (1) providing environmentally friendly age- and gender sensitive water sanitation and hygiene promotion; (2) implementing environment-friendly hygienic waste management measures such as provision of bins and drainage repair; (3) providing gender age and culturally appropriate hygiene kits as well as dignity kits for women and girls; (4) providing gender age and culturally appropriate counselling and information on health and family planning services; (5) establishing two child-friendly spaces for children and youth and two women and girls’ safe spaces with protection services; and (6) providing training to Men’s Watch Groups on issues such as gender equality women’s empowerment women’s rights and sexual and gender-based violence.

The expected outcomes for this project include: (1) increased awareness of environment-friendly gender-sensitive and culturally appropriate sanitation hygiene and health practices of Rohingya refugee and host community members especially women and girls of reproductive age; (2) increased access to hygiene and dignity kits for Rohingya refugees and host community members especially women and girls of reproductive age and persons with special needs; (3) increased access for refugee children and youth to child-friendly spaces providing age gender and culturally appropriate protection activities and support; (4) increased access to women and girls’ safe spaces for Rohingya women and girls providing age gender and culturally appropriate protection support. The expected ultimate outcome is reduced suffering human dignity maintained and lives saved among conflict-affected Rohingya refugees and the host community particularly women and girls with children under 5 girls and boys elderly and persons with special needs in Cox’s Bazar Bangladesh.