National
6 years ago

Rohingya camps grapple with land crisis

Say aid groups

Reuters file photo
Reuters file photo

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Updated :

Land crisis has hit the efforts to provide "safe and dignified" living environment for the Rohingya in refugee camps in Cox's Bazar.

Congestion and overcrowding of camps, particularly in Kutupalong-Balukhali expansion site, is a "grave concern" and exposes families to the risk of fire, disease and outbreak of diphtheria and acute water diarrhoea, says an Inter Sector Coordination Group (ISCG) report.

ISCG is the platform of several international NGOs which have been engaged in humanitarian response since the beginning of the Rohingya crisis in last August.

Highlighting the land shortage, it said, there is also a lack of sufficient space to relocate refugees living in landslide and flood risk areas.

Some service structures are in landslide and flood risk areas themselves as space for the installation of essential services is also inadequate.

Funding shortfall hampers assistance and provision of many needs identified by the sector, most notably the construction of critical infrastructure.

The overarching challenge for the shelter response remains the lack of suitable land to decongest camps and construct shelter, which meets the minimum standard, capable of withstanding the climatic weather conditions, it said.

The group which has been engaged in providing shelter is only 14 per cent funded.

According to the report, until last month, some 360,000 households have been repaired and 39,322 people were relocated to the developed sites.

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