WHO appeals for $16 million to tackle Rohingya crisis

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has appealed for funding to the tune of $16 million to meet the health needs of 1.3 million Rohingyas refugee in Bangladeh’s Cox Bazar, as it anticipates “grave health risks in the coming rainy season”. 

One of the biggest humanitarian crisis in recent times, the UN body said that not a single agency or government of Bangladesh has the capacity to meet the health needs of these refugees. 

“The Rohingya population are settled in an area that is prone to cyclone, and a terrain that would be flooded as soon as rains begin. The risk of outbreak of life threatening water and vector borne diseases under such conditions is huge,” said Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, Regional Director, World Health Organization South-East Asia, at a meeting of partners in Bangladesh. 

The appeal for $16 million is part of the total appeal of nearly $113mn that heath organisations have asked for to deal with the Rohingya crisis.

The United Nations High Commission for Refugees estimates nearly 671,000 Rohingya men, women and children have fled from the violence in Myanmar since August 2017. 

WHO has put a contingency plan for the rainy season, which includes offering health services that would minimise the risk of disease and death. 

Some of the initiatives include cholera and measles vaccination programme, stocking of medicines and medical supplies among other facilities. 

However, Dr Singh thinks much of the health sector’s capacity to respond depends on availability of resources. 

“The sooner the health sector gets the funds it needs, the better would be its ability to scale up services to quickly and adequately respond to health needs of the refugees.