Australia pledges AUD 18.4 million more for Rohingyas

Australia has announced an additional humanitarian aid of AUD 18.4 million to meet urgent needs of the Rohingyas and their host community in Bangladesh.

This assistance will be allocated to aid agencies including the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and World Food Program (WFP) that are providing food, shelter, health and protection services to the most vulnerable people living in Cox's Bazar.

Julie Bishop, Australia's minister for foreign affairs, made the announcement, according to a press release of the Australian High Commission in Dhaka yesterday.

The Australian funding will contribute to providing food for more than 800,000 people and nutrition supplements for around 139,000 women and children.

The fund will also help reinforce shelters, ensure food distribution and relocate up to 135,000 Rohingyas who are at the highest risk of landslides. It will also help reunite children with their families, create safe areas for vulnerable women and children and provide incomes to around 40,000 women, the release said.

The new pledge brings Australia's total humanitarian response to the Rohingya crisis to AUD 70 million since September 2017.

The government of Bangladesh is continuing to devote significant resources in its attempt to provide assistance to the large number of Rohingyas as they poured into Bangladesh to flee persecution in Myanmar, creating one of the world's largest humanitarian crises. The Australian government is committed to working side by side with Bangladesh to support those in need, the release added.