UN Calls for Rohingya Self-Reliance Amid Aid Shortfall

(MENAFN) A United Nations refugee official has called for increased self-reliance and livelihood opportunities for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar region, citing a “dramatic decline” in humanitarian aid.

The comments came during a Wednesday meeting between Bangladesh’s interim leader Muhammad Yunus and newly appointed UNHCR country representative Ivo Freijsen, according to a statement from Yunus’s office. Freijsen emphasized the importance of strengthening self-reliance initiatives within Rohingya settlements as funding shortages continue to strain humanitarian operations.

Yunus noted that the Rohingya crisis no longer receives sufficient international attention and urged the UN refugee agency to remain actively engaged to support the refugees’ safe return. He stressed that repatriating more than one million Rohingya refugees to Myanmar’s Rakhine State “remains the only viable and sustainable solution to the crisis.”

Bangladesh has hosted over 1.3 million Rohingya refugees since they fled a military crackdown in Myanmar in August 2017, but no large-scale repatriation has occurred since. International funding for humanitarian assistance has steadily declined, forcing the UN World Food Program (WFP) to cut food rations in 2023 and adjust support through 2025 due to reduced global contributions.

Earlier reductions, including halving rations, were driven partly by the US scaling back support to USAID, a key donor for Rohingya aid. While some funding pledges later restored food distributions, uncertainty over long-term support remains.

MENAFN29012026000045017640ID1110668290