27,825 families in Rohingya refugee camps

The government has started making a list of Rohingya families who have fled persecution in Myanmar. As of Sunday, 27,825 families were counted at Kutupalong and Balukhali camps by the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief, supported by UNHCR. The counting began earlier this month. The exercise will be extended to include the entire Kutupalong and Balukhali sites, upon request from the Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commission. However, according to IOM Needs and Population Monitoring, UNHCR and other field reports from Naikhyangchhari (in Bandarban), 537,000 new arrivals are reported as of Saturday and cross border movement of over 18,000 newly arrived refugees has been verified in the past week. More than 7,000 individuals have been moved from Naikhyangchhari to Kutupalong expansion site by local authorities. Separately, the Ministry of Home Affairs has overseen the registration of 161,963 Rohingya in the reporting period – this figure represents approximately 28% of the estimated population, eligible for registration. Also, the registration centre is being relocated to the Kutupalong Extension Site and the mapping of community leadership structures in the Kutupalong extensions site continues as well. The Inter Sector Coordination Group report pointed out some needs and lacking in site management. It stated that an estimated 700,000 people are in need of Site Management assistance. There has been tremendous pressure on the existing settlements since the population of registered camp and makeshift settlements has more than doubled post August 25. Population movement within Cox's Bazar remains highly fluid, with increasing concentration in Ukhiya, where the government has allocated 3,000 acres for a new camp. People have begun arriving at the new, proposed site before infrastructure and services can be established. "Crucially there is limited access to the site and no roads through this site; this is preventing the development of infrastructure including water and sanitation facilities," said the report. The sheer size, density and spontaneous nature of the makeshift settlements hosting refugees remain major obstacle to setting up the communal infrastructures necessary to coordinate services at site level and interact meaningfully with community leaders and local authorities.