International Organization for Migration, or IOM, has launched a $3.7m fundraising campaign to help Rohingya migrants affected by Cyclone Mora in Bangladesh.
The cyclone, which brought 117 km/h winds and heavy rain in late May , tore into makeshift settlements inhabited by over 130,000 Rohingyas, also known in Bangladesh as Undocumented Myanmar Nationals (UMNs).
The cyclone destroyed 25% of shelters and left the rest partially damaged. Power connections to the settlements were cut off, food and fuel supplies hindered, and health and sanitation facilities badly damaged.
The IOM campaign, which aims to help some 80,000 people in the settlements and host communities between now and the end of the year, will target health, water, sanitation, shelter and protection, according to the IOM.
IOM’s emergency response staff working in the settlements said restoration of water and sanitation facilities is their top priority. The storm knocked out 243 latrines, as well as tube wells on which poor residents are solely dependent for clean water.
Shelter and non-food relief items, including plastic sheeting, mosquito nets and blankets, are urgently needed for the estimated 17,000 families that lost their homes.
Over 75,000 UMNs have fled to Bangladesh ever since violence erupted in Myanmar’s Rakhine state in October last year.
Rocked and displaced by brutalities perpetrated by their government, the Rohingyas have taken shelter in the settlements in Cox’s Bazar, where the IOM provides site management and coordinates the work of other aid agencies.
The UN migration agency, which has been working with the UMNs and host communities in the areas since 2014, also provides water, sanitation assistance, shelter, healthcare and protection from gender-based violence.
Tuesday, July 21, 2026
