Nearly 88 percent of the funding under the 2026 Joint Response Plan (JRP) for the Rohingya humanitarian response is held by UN agencies.
Lcal NGOs (LNGOs), however, receive only 2.5 per cent of the funding allocated for the refugee camps, according to a latest research revealed on Tuesday.
The findings were presented at a press conference titled “Where Is the Funding for the Rohingya Response Going?”, organised by the Cox’s Bazar CSO-NGO Forum (CCNF) and COAST Foundation, held at the Cox’s Bazar Press Club, said a release.
Md Shahinur Islam of COAST Foundation presented the research findings, saying US$ 710.5 million is required to assist 1.56 million people under the 2026 JRP.
Of the funding, 87.96 percent is held by UN agencies, 7.78 percent by international NGOs and 4.26 percent by national NGOs, while LNGOs have no funding as appealing partners in the JRP, according to the presentation.
Within funding allocated for the Rohingya camps, 63.6 per cent goes to international NGOs, 33.9 per cent to national NGOs and only 2.5 per cent to LNGOs, it said.
The presentation also showed that of $ 150 million in funding from the United States, 92 percent went to UN agencies and 8 percent to international NGOs.
Speakers said funding is being channelled through UN agencies and international NGOs, whose operational costs are also significantly high.
Anjuman Ara Begum of Rokeya Foundation called for meaningful engagement of LNGOs in humanitarian response efforts and demanded that at least 25 percent of humanitarian funding be provided directly to LNGOs.
Helal Uddin, executive director of local NGO 'Agrajatra', said local organisations have no access or only very limited access under the current JRP and Pooled Fund mechanism.
He demanded that local organisations be included as appealing partners in the JRP so they can directly access the funds.
Nurul Islam Helali, president of Journalist Association Cox’s Bazar, said funding to LNGOs is not charity but the right of local organisations.
Robiul Alam, president of the Ukhiya Rights Implementation Committee, focused on environmental protection, surface water preservation and restoration of agricultural land.
He said waste from the camps is damaging local farmland and called for a permanent solution to the problem.
Nasir Uddin said there has been no progress in repatriation and that frustration and uncertainty among the host community continue to grow.
CCNF Member Secretary Zahangir Alam said peaceful coexistence is not possible without a sustainable solution to the crisis.
Momtaz Uddin Bahari, general secretary of the Cox’s Bazar Press Club, stressed the need for an effective and sustainable solution to the Rohingya crisis.
The Rohingya crisis has entered its 10th year since the influx began in 2017, with nearly 1.2 million Rohingya refugees currently sheltered in Cox’s Bazar, according to the organisers.
