Source: ChildFund New Zealand
A fire just last month in the Bangladesh refugee camps for displaced Rohingya has destroyed life-saving gardens that provide food to some of the 1.1 million refugees.
Cox’s Bazar is home to the biggest refugee camps in the world. It grew rapidly in 2017 following the mass exodus of Rohingya families escaping massacres in their home communities in Myanmar.
It is now a multi-year, city-sized humanitarian operation.
“It is understandable that with so many crises today, some tragedies get forgotten. That is the case with the Rohingya community, who have been living in these fragile, make-shift homes, and raising families in the camps for nearly ten years.”
A whole generation of children have grown up in the camps, knowing no other home.
The settlement is extraordinarily dense, covering only a relatively small area and consisting largely of bamboo-and-tarpaulin shelters.
“At ChildFund, we stand by our commitment to leave no-one behind, even when the stories drop out of the media. We have kept up our support in places like Cox’s Bazar for 10 years,” says Josie Pagani, CEO of ChildFund New Zealand.
A devastating fire tore through Cox’s Bazar last month, destroying food gardens that provide food security and income generation for women, damaging shelters belonging to families who had very little to begin with.
The fire broke out late afternoon, and was brought under control as quickly as possible. No one was killed or injured.
“That is the good news, but it is the only good news. These fires have happened before, and they set families back by years. These gardens are not decorative. They are an important source of food for families. Progress is fragile, and can be destroyed in minutes by fire. Months of work, gone in twenty-five minutes.”
In 2021, a major fire in Cox’s Bazar left tens of thousands of people without shelter and destroyed hospitals, learning centres, distribution points and other essential facilities.
“It has taken years to recover. Unfortunately fires are one of the camps’ most persistent threats.”
Shelters are temporary. Families cook over open flames. People live close together because they have no choice. When fire starts, it moves quickly.
“A cooking fire can become a shelter fire. A shelter fire can destroy food, documents, safety and months of careful work.”
“Families in the camps cannot escape this risk by moving somewhere else, like we can in New Zealand. They have nowhere safe to go. ChildFund will continue to support the camps with practical work – gardens, education, reducing the risk of fires, and making sure recovery is as quick as possible,” says Josie Pagani.