Attachments
To date, this Emergency Appeal which seeks CHF 198.2 million, is 45.07 per cent funded (funding coverage as of 30 June 2025 is CHF 89.35 million). Due to the revision of funding from the US Government’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (BPRM) now limited to lifesaving activities only, and no further funding commitment after July 2025, the operational scope has been significantly reduced. This may impact the overall funding coverage and the operations. Further funding contributions are needed from all sources including IFRC and its membership to enable the Bangladesh Red Crescent Society (BDRCS), to continue to meet the humanitarian needs of displaced people from Rakhine, as well as the local community affected by the influx.
A. SITUATION ANALYSIS
Description of the crisis
In August 2017, nearly 700,000 people from Rakhine State, Myanmar, were forcibly displaced and crossed the border into Bangladesh to seek safety and refuge. This added to the existing population of displaced people from Rakhine State, Myanmar, who have been seeking refuge in Bangladesh since 1978. As of 30 June 2025, the total number of displaced individuals stands at 1,143,096. Of these, 1,106,008 currently reside in 33 overcrowded camps located in the Ukhiya and Teknaf sub-districts of Cox’s Bazar, while 37,088 have been relocated from the Cox's Bazar camps to Bhashan Char Island since late 2020.
In addition, the renewed escalation of violence in Rakhine State has resulted in the arrival of approximately 120,000 people since February 2024, while approximately 18,000 children have been born in the camps and on Bhashan Char since January 2025 (based on local authority estimates of an average of 100 births per day. Many have taken shelter within the existing camps, living with friends and relatives.
As biometric identification continues, and as the situation remains volatile across the border, more people from Rakhine are expected to flee to Cox’s Bazar, with projected numbers potentially reaching up to 200,000 by the end of 2025.
This ongoing, complex, and protracted displacement crisis has left the affected population fully reliant on humanitarian assistance to meet their basic needs, with no durable solutions in sight and continued uncertainty surrounding their repatriation. The situation is further compounded by frequent cyclones, seasonal rainfall, flash floods, fire incidents, and heightened security concerns within the camps.
According to the latest population factsheet published by the Government of Bangladesh and UNHCR, of the total population 78 per cent are women, children and elderly, of whom 54 per cent are female. Around 10 per cent of the population are deemed to be people specific needs, including people with disabilities (PwDs), single parents, those with serious medical conditions, unaccompanied children, older persons at risk, and others requiring legal and physical protection. Their essential needs include food, healthcare, safe shelter, clean water, sanitation, hygiene services, lifesaving information, protection services, and preparedness for seasonal hazards such as cyclones, monsoon rains, disease outbreaks (e.g., cholera and dengue), and other multi-hazard threats. Environmental and ecosystem degradation prevention is also a key concern.