UN, partners appeal for $710M for Rohingya response in Bangladesh amid fund cut

The UN and partners on Wednesday appealed for lowered assistance of $710.5 million under a joint response plan to meet the critical needs of Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh amid a serious funding crisis.

The new appeal will be 26% lower than in 2025 and will cover only the minimum required to sustain life-saving assistance, according to the UNHCR refugee agency in a statement from the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka.

The hyper-prioritized 2026 update of the plan for the Rohingya humanitarian crisis will reach up to 1.56 million people, including Rohingya refugees in Cox’s Bazar, southeastern Bangladesh, and host communities. The fund will also cover Rohingya on the remote island of Bhasan, located at the Bay of Bengal. There are over a million members of the Rohingya minority taking refuge in Bangladesh after facing harsh persecution in neighboring Myanmar.

The update was presented at the UN House in Dhaka with representatives from other UN agencies, donor countries and officials from Bangladesh’s government present.

The Rohingya fled targeted violence and persecution in Myanmar in August 2017 and remained in Bangladesh due to no progress in repatriation to their home country.

Continued conflict in Myanmar has also forced more people to flee. Since early 2024, some 150,000 Rohingya have newly arrived, straining limited humanitarian resources and intensifying pressure on overcrowded camps.

“As resources become more limited, it is more important than ever to help refugees build skills and resilience, so they can gain independence, hold on to hope, and rebuild their lives,” said Kelly T. Clements, deputy high commissioner of the UNHCR.

Rohingya refugees remain largely reliant on aid despite sharp reductions in humanitarian funding and declining development support.

Limited economic opportunities and reduced assistance continue to heavily impact Rohingya households—a situation exacerbated for new arrivals and vulnerable groups, including women and girls, persons with disabilities, and older people, said the UNHCR.

As conflict inside Rakhine State continues, hopes for an imminent return to Myanmar are fading. As conditions worsen, more refugees resort to desperate choices, including dangerous and often deadly sea journeys in search of opportunities elsewhere in the region.

2025 was the deadliest year on record for such voyages—just last month, a vessel carrying more than 270 people, many of them refugees, capsized, leaving only nine survivors, said the UN agency.