The United Nations has issued a warning that it will be compelled to reduce rations by half for approximately one million Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh starting next month due to insufficient funding.
The World Food Programme (WFP) stated in a letter on Wednesday that “severe funding shortfalls” are necessitating a reduction in monthly food vouchers from $12.50 to $6 per person.
“Unfortunately, we have still not received sufficient funding, and cost-saving measures alone are not enough,” the letter said.
Mohammed Mizanur Rahman, Bangladesh’s top official overseeing Rohingya refugee camps, confirmed the aid cut.
“I received the letter confirming a $6.50 cut, which will take effect from April 1,” said the Bangladesh refugee relief and repatriation commissioner.
“What they are receiving now is already not enough, so it’s hard to imagine the consequences of this new cut,” he told Reuters by phone.
The WFP announcement comes just days before a planned visit by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who is scheduled to meet Rohingya refugees during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.
Bangladesh is hosting over one million Rohingya, members of a persecuted Muslim minority who fled violent purges in neighboring Myanmar, primarily in 2016 and 2017. They reside in overcrowded camps in the southern district of Cox’s Bazar, where access to job opportunities and education is severely limited.
Successive reductions in aid have already caused significant hardship among the Rohingya refugees, who rely on aid and suffer from widespread malnutrition.
Bangladesh has struggled to support the refugees as the prospects of their return to Myanmar or resettlement elsewhere remain bleak.
Nay San Lwin, co-founder of the Free Rohingya Coalition, described the food voucher cut as “a death sentence” for the Rohingya, who are already enduring dire conditions.
“WFP should emphasize reducing administrative costs and other expenses while increasing quotas for refugees to receive lifesaving support,” he told Al Jazeera.
“International donors should prioritize life-saving efforts instead of spending funds on other purposes.”
### Risk of Hunger and Disease
The funding gap is attributed to a broad shortfall in donations rather than a decision by the Trump administration in the United States to cut global foreign aid, the WFP explained, noting that US support for food aid to the Rohingya has continued.
However, the Trump administration’s abrupt halt to most US foreign aid will impact health facilities in the refugee camps.
Rahman stated that the cuts by Washington mean a “squeeze on operations” at hospitals in the Rohingya camps and in waste management, with five US-funded hospitals having to reduce services. He warned that further reductions in food aid would create a “grievous problem.”
“These people are stateless, ill-fated and should not be suffering due to the funding crunch,” Rahman said.
The US contributed more than 50 percent of the funds for the Rohingya humanitarian response in 2024, approximately $300 million, Rahman noted last month.
UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi expressed concern on Friday that a decrease in donor support could endanger thousands of lives.
“If donor support decreases dramatically—which may happen—the extensive work done by the Bangladesh government, aid agencies, and refugees will be impacted, putting thousands at risk of hunger, disease, and insecurity,” Grandi posted on X.
A previous round of ration cuts in 2023, which reduced food rations to $8 monthly, led to a sharp increase in hunger and malnutrition, according to the UN. Within months, 90 percent of the camp population struggled to access an adequate diet, and over 15 percent of children suffered from malnutrition, the highest rate recorded. The cut was later reversed.
On Monday, the European Commission announced the allocation of €76 million ($79.4 million) in humanitarian aid for Rohingya refugees and others affected by conflict in Myanmar.
“The EU stands firmly with Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh, just as we have for the past seven years,” said EU Crisis Commissioner Hadja Lahbib.
“With conflict still raging in Rakhine State and across Myanmar, their safe and dignified return remains out of reach,” added Lahbib, who visited refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar on Monday.
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