Australia Signs £8.7m Humanitarian Deal for Rohingya and Local Communities

A crucial humanitarian agreement has been finalised to improve the living conditions of Rohingya refugees and their host communities in Bangladesh. Valued at 16 million Australian dollars (approximately 137 crore Taka or £8.7 million), the funding aims to deliver essential services to vulnerable populations.

The official signing ceremony took place on Wednesday at the Bangladesh Secretariat in Dhaka. The agreement was formalised between the Australian Government and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in the presence of the Bangladeshi Home Minister, Salahuddin Ahmed. Susan Ryle, the Australian High Commissioner to Bangladesh, and Rana Flowers, the UNICEF Representative to Bangladesh, endorsed the pact at the Ministry of Home Affairs conference room.

Expressing his gratitude during the proceedings, Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed lauded Australia’s steadfast commitment to the regional crisis. He extended formal thanks to the Australian government for its continuous aid allocation. Ahmed emphasised that the government of Bangladesh expects unwavering support from international allies until a voluntary, safe, dignified, and sustainable repatriation of the Rohingya to Myanmar is achieved.

UNICEF will administer the newly decentralised fund directly across grassroots projects. The targeted sectors include child protection, primary education, nutritional support, clean water accessibility, sennitation facilities, and general hygiene upgrades. These interventions are designed to ease the immense infrastructural pressure on Cox’s Bazar, where the vast majority of refugees reside alongside heavily impacted local communities.

According to sources within the Ministry of Home Affairs, this 16 million AUD grant is not an isolated contribution. It is a structured component of Australia’s broader humanitarian package for the 2026–2028 cycle. This comprehensive regional assistance programme stands at 370 million AUD (roughly 3,162 crore Taka) and is designated for displaced Rohingya across both Myanmar and Bangladesh.

Australia has remained a key donor since the massive influx of refugees began in August 2017 following military crackdowns in Myanmar’s Rakhine State. With this latest agreement, Australia’s cumulative humanitarian assistance to the Rohingya crisis has reached 1.26 billion AUD (approximately 10,770 crore Taka). Senior officials, including Monzur Miah Chowdhury, Senior Secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs, alongside senior diplomats from the Australian High Commission and UNICEF delegates, witnessed the signing.