NEW YORK, September 29: UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell met with Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus on Monday on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly at a hotel in New York.
Their discussion focused on the ongoing Rohingya crisis, particularly the severe funding shortfall affecting humanitarian operations for the over one million refugees currently sheltered in Bangladesh. A key concern was the impact of these funding cuts on education services for Rohingya children in the camps.
Describing the donor funding cuts as a serious challenge, Professor Yunus said they had already forced the closure of schools and resulted in job losses for thousands of Rohingya teachers.
"This is a disaster. Education in the camps provided a glimmer of hope for hundreds of thousands of Rohingya children. Our concern is for these children, who are growing up as angry young people—and that anger could erupt in unpredictable ways," Professor Yunus said.
UNICEF Executive Director Russell painted a grim picture of the global funding climate, noting that even traditionally generous European nations are reducing their humanitarian contributions to agencies such as UNICEF.
She urged the Bangladeshi government to introduce skills training for Rohingya youth so they could eventually apply those skills upon returning to their homeland.
UNICEF Deputy Executive Director Ted Chaiban, who also attended the meeting, emphasized the positive impact that education has already had in the refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar.
"The level of education among Rohingya children has increased significantly," he noted.
The meeting also addressed the upcoming High-Level Rohingya Conference at the UN headquarters on Tuesday. Professor Yunus urged UNICEF to use the occasion to advocate strongly for the continuation and expansion of education initiatives in the camps.
Others present at the meeting included Tasnim Jara, senior leader of the National Coordination Platform (NCP), and Lamiya Morshed, SDG Coordinator and Senior Secretary.