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Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh three years after their exodus

Bangladesh

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Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya are living in Bangladesh after fleeing targeted violence in Myanmar.

Cox’s Bazar district in Bangladesh has hosted Rohingya refugees fleeing targeted violence in neighbouring Myanmar's Rakhine state since 1978. The latest violence, which began in August 2017, has provoked an unprecedented exodus, forcing hundreds of thousands of people to live in camps with deteriorating conditions. Around 860,000 Rohingya refugees live over a surface of 26 square kilometres.

At present, we are providing medical care in two districts: Dhaka and Cox’s Bazar, while working to maintain our regular medical response. The current intervention in Cox’s Bazar started in 2009, when Kutupalong field hospital was established to serve both refugees and the local community.

In August 2017, we scaled up activities and now run nine health facilities across Cox’s Bazar district, including three hospitals, three primary health centres and two specialised clinics. 

Why are we here?

Our activities in 2022 in Bangladesh

Data and information from the International Activity Report 2022.

MSF in Bangladesh in 2022 In Bangladesh, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) provides healthcare for Rohingya refugees who have fled persecution in Myanmar. In 2022, we also supported responses to flooding and outbreaks of diarrhoea.
Bangladesh IAR map 2022

Across 10 facilities in Cox’s Bazar, our teams run a range of services to address some of the vast health needs of more than 920,000 Rohingya refugees living in camps, as well as a growing number of patients from the host community. Activities include general healthcare, treatment for chronic diseases, psychosocial support and women’s healthcare.

From March, we saw a rapid surge in patients with scabies that continued throughout the year, resulting in a significant increase in admissions to our facilities.

In April, we carried out a survey on water, hygiene and sanitation in the refugee camps, which showed that 88 per cent of inhabitants had no access to proper sanitation facilities, while 76 per cent of the available toilets were overflowing.

In Kamrangirchar district, in the capital, Dhaka, we collaborated with the Center for Injury Prevention and Research Bangladesh to conduct a feasibility study in two metal factories, aimed at improving work safety and reducing injuries, focusing particularly on female and young workers.

In April, Dhaka hospitals started seeing an increase in cases of acute watery diarrhoea. In response, our teams donated supplies of saline solution and other medical materials to the Ministry of Health.

In July, MSF teams supported the Bangladesh Rehabilitation Assistance Committee’s response to a severe flash flood in Sylhet, in the northeast of the country. We distributed water, hygiene and sanitation kits to households, and ran mobile clinics in boats, providing emergency medical care.

In addition, we continued to offer technical support to the Ministry of Health to raise awareness among health workers and the community of the dangers of methanol poisoning, and contributed to the development of the National Mental Health Act, issued in 2022. 

 

In 2022
 
Drawing (16X9) Give Me Hope: Depicting Rohingya Crisis Animation
Rohingya refugee crisis

Rohingya refugees left to starve at sea

Voices from the Field 22 Apr 2020
 
Measles: Rashida cares for her baby
Measles

“These children shouldn’t be sick” – tackling measles in Rohingya refugee camps

Project Update 19 Feb 2020
 
Mental healthcare in Cox’s Bazar.
Bangladesh

Rohingya refugee crisis: Unseen wounds need to heal

Project Update 3 Dec 2019
 
The “big road” in Cox’s Bazar
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ASEAN should show true leadership on Rohingya, Myanmar

Op-Ed 13 Sep 2019
 
Kutupalong megacamp
Rohingya refugee crisis

Two years on: No solutions in sight for the Rohingya

Project Update 20 Aug 2019
 
Kutupalong megacamp
Rohingya refugee crisis

Being Rohingya in Bangladesh: “The population has been completely suspended in time”

Voices from the Field 20 Aug 2019
 
Kutupalong megacamp
Rohingya refugee crisis

“The collective fate of the Rohingya is in our hands”

Voices from the Field 20 Aug 2019
 
"It's difficult to plan a future for our children"
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People are suspended in time: Two years on from the Rohingya refugee crisis

msf.org 19 Aug 2019
 
The “big road” in Cox’s Bazar
Rohingya refugee crisis

Crisis update - May 2019

Crisis Update 14 May 2019

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4 December 2018