The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has warned that the already dire humanitarian situation faced by Rohingya children in Bangladesh risks becoming catastrophe as the cyclone and monsoon seasons approach.
UNICEF said the health and safety of more than 520,000 Rohingya children living in overcrowded camps and informal settlements is likely to be put at even greater risk.
It said unsafe water, inadequate sanitation and poor hygiene conditions can lead to cholera outbreaks and Hepatitis E, a deadly disease for pregnant women and their babies, while standing water pools can attract malaria-carrying mosquitos.
UNICEF warns of potential catastrophe in Bangladesh | Read more: https://t.co/LATN2iaBp4 pic.twitter.com/YVbejfvROW
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More than 4,000 suspected cases of diphtheria have been reported among the refugee population, with 32 deaths including at least 24 children.
UNICEF and its partners have launched a diphtheria vaccination campaign, and are working to provide children and families with access to safe water and sanitation facilities, but overcrowding and the growing risk of extreme weather increases the risk of further outbreaks.
UNICEF said the cyclone season also brings an increased risk of flooding and landslides. It said even a moderate storm could have a devastating impact, with little time to prepare ahead of the start of the cyclone season in March.
Tropical cyclones generally strike Bangladesh in two seasons, March through July, and September through December, with the greatest number of storms arriving in May and October.
In May last year, Cyclone Mora barrelled through the region, destroying approximately one quarter of the makeshift shelters in Rohingya refugee camps and causing widespread damage.
Meanwhile, Myanmar and Bangladesh have agreed to repatriate Rohingya recently displaced by an army crackdown "within two years".
