EU strengthens humanitarian support for Rohingya crisis with €10 million

The European Commission is releasing a further €10 million in humanitarian aid to address the Rohingya crisis in Bangladesh and Myanmar. This comes on top of the €33 million funding already announced earlier this year and aims to ensure life-saving assistance to refugees, displaced people and host communities across Myanmar’s Northern Rakhine State and the border district of Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh.

“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” said Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarčič.

The additional funding will focus on providing quality health care and help address the undernutrition for the one million Rohingya refugees living in Bangladesh, after living conditions further deteriorated over the last months.

It will also provide food nutrition and protection for all displaced people living in Myanmar’s Rakhine state, where the humanitarian situation has further deteriorated this year due to the escalation of violence in the region.

Background

September 2019 marked two years since the massive influx to Bangladesh of over 740,000 Rohingya refugees fleeing violence in Myanmar’s Northern Rakhine state. In total, almost 1 million refugees are living in camps in the Cox’s Bazar district, fully reliant on humanitarian assistance.

Since 2017, the European Union has provided over €140 million in aid to respond to the Rohingya crisis both in Myanmar and in Bangladesh. This includes basic humanitarian assistance for Rohingya populations (both for those who have been living in displacement in Bangladesh for many years, and for the newly arrived), and host communities living close to the refugee settlements. The EU provides shelters, health care, water and sanitation support, nutrition assistance, education, and protection services.

Approximately 600,000 remaining Rohingya people in Myanmar’s Rakhine continue to suffer from a protracted humanitarian crisis, with very limited access to basic services and viable livelihood opportunities due to strict movement restrictions and denied citizenship and rights. In 2019, anew conflict between the Myanmar military and the Arakan Army (an ethnic Rakhine armed group) has caused new displacement of the Rakhine population and other ethnic minorities. The total number of new internally displaced persons in Rakhine State has risen to 70,000 spread over 106 sites.