Zakir Hossain from Dhaka
The United Nations has warned that aid for Rohingya refugee children in Bangladesh is nearing a “funding cliff,” with UNICEF saying conditions in the overcrowded camps could worsen sharply by 2026 as global support dries up.
“A funding crisis is unfolding, threatening to erase years of progress for Rohingya children,” said Carla Haddad Mardini, UNICEF’s fundraising chief, after visiting Cox’s Bazar. “It was disheartening to watch classrooms close and services shrink. We’re running out of options.”
She said education, water, and sanitation programmes are hardest hit, while child recruitment by armed groups has surged— 685 cases so far this year, five times more than in 2024. Severe acute malnutrition among children has also reached its highest level since the crisis began in 2017.
The crisis has deepened as traditional donors, including the United States, slash foreign aid. “The overall Rohingya response faces a funding cliff in early 2026,” Mardini said, warning that contributions could fall by half despite cost-cutting efforts.
Interim government chief adviser Muhammad Yunus’ press secretary Shafiqul Alam said fund mobilisation has become increasingly difficult as “many countries apparently do not want to fund like before.” He said Muhammad Yunus discussed new funding avenues with WFP Acting Executive Director Carl Skau during his recent visit to Rome.
Bangladesh now hosts 1.3 million Rohingya refugees, including 150,000 who arrived since early 2024. Despite limited resources, Alam said, the country continues to shelter them, “setting an example to the rest of the world.”
UNHCR Chief Filippo Grandi called the funding outlook “grim,” warning of more cuts that could lead to child deaths and perilous sea journeys. He urged global donors to “do more” through resettlement, education, and labour mobility to provide lasting solutions.