WFP's Rohingya response receives significant funding boost from the United States

 The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has received a substantial new contribution from USAID's Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance to support its humanitarian response to the Rohingya crisis in Bangladesh.

Valued at US$121 million, the latest U.S. contribution includes in-kind and financial support for Rohingya refugees and host communities in Bangladesh. The funds will provide lifesaving food and nutrition assistance and support resilience-building and disaster risk reduction in the camps. Children and pregnant and breastfeeding women in host communities will also receive help to prevent and treat malnutrition.

The U.S. funding will enable WFP to provide immediate food needs during emergencies (hot meals and fortified biscuits) for Rohingya families affected by cyclones, floods, landslides, and fire incidents.

"The United States continues to lead the way in funding this crucial humanitarian response for more than 1 million Rohingya refugees. Our commitment remains unwavering. Their needs and those of their generous host communities should remain a priority for the international community," said Reed Aeschliman, USAID Mission Director in Bangladesh.

Now entering the eighth year of the crisis, the Rohingya population in Bangladesh remains in a precarious situation, facing movement restrictions, a lack of job opportunities, and increasing security threats.

In 2023, reduced funding forced WFP to cut food rations from US$12 to US$10, then US$8. Monitoring showed a sharp decline in food consumption among Rohingya families in the camps, with global acute malnutrition (GAM) rising to 15.1%—above the 15% emergency threshold per WHO classification, marking the worst level since the 2017 influx.

The U.S. contributions played a pivotal role in helping WFP restore food rations in Cox's Bazar. Beginning in early 2024, WFP increased the ration and, by August, restored the total amount to US$12.50 per person per month. For the first time, fortified rice was added to the assistance package. However, to sustain the total ration and continue operations into next year, WFP urgently requires nearly US$80 million in additional funding.

"We are deeply grateful to the United States for their longstanding and unwavering support to the Rohingya population. I hope other humanitarian and development partners will follow their example. Only by working together can we meet the basic needs of Rohingya families until they can safely be repatriated to Myanmar," said Dom Scalpelli, WFP Country Director in Bangladesh.