Bangladesh

02 November 2023

Tropical Cyclone Hamoon made landfall on coastal areas of Chattogram and Cox’s Bazar districts in southeastern Bangladesh on the night of 24 October 2023. The cyclone damaged or destroyed nearly 43,000 houses and damaged around 15,500 acres of cropland. It affected 590,000 people, including 310,000 children, 19,200 elderly people, 7,900 lactating and pregnant women, and 8,500 people with disabilities. Urgent needs include shelter items, such as tents, tarpaulins, and shelter tool kits, clothes, kitchen utensils, and cash support. Farmers need livelihood support, especially in the form of agricultural inputs, such as seeds, fertilisers, pesticides, and tools. Based on past urgent needs in similar disaster events, children would need psychosocial support, pregnant and lactating women would need basic obstetric services, and damaged WASH facilities would need repairs or rebuilding, especially for elderly people and people with disabilities. (CARE 30/10/2023, ECHO 25/10/2023, TBS 26/10/2023)

26 September 2023

There are around 963,000 registered Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh; around 932,000 of them live in the refugee camps of Ukhia and Teknaf subdistricts, Cox’s Bazar district, which is the world’s largest refugee settlement. They are not allowed to travel outside the settlement. Movement between and inside camps is also limited, as they have to cross checkpoints where they face arbitrary movement restrictions, arrests, extortion, and harassment by security forces. The refugees also have to comply with an 18:00–06:00 curfew, which makes them increasingly vulnerable to violence from armed groups and gangs that tend to take control of camps at night and whose activities have significantly increased in the last two years. Refugees’ access to basic necessities such as food, water, and healthcare completely depends on humanitarian aid, and such movement restrictions limit their access to humanitarian assistance. (UNHCR 11/09/2023, HRW 17/01/2023, RFA 22/09/2023)

23 July 2023

As at 25 July, Bangladesh had recorded the highest-ever number of dengue cases for the period of January–July in 2023. 40,000 cases (around 2,500 in Rohingya refugee camps), including over 200 deaths, were recorded. Dengue cases and deaths usually peak in August and September. (New Age 21/07/2023, DGHS 25/07/2023, TBS 17/07/2023)

16 May 2023

Cyclone Mocha has destroyed more than 300 shelters and damaged 3,900 in the Rohingya refugee camps in Cox's Bazar. It has also damaged 100 latrines, 45 learning centres, and 12 water points, affecting more than 21,000 people. Among them, more than 3,500 people are displaced. The affected population is in urgent need of food, clean drinking water, and other essential items, such as clothing, blankets, hygiene kits, and jerrycans. They also need housing repair and rehabilitation assistance. (ISCG accessed 16/05/2023, UN 15/05/2023, New Age 16/05/2023)