Nine years after fleeing violence in Myanmar, Rohingya families in Bangladesh are facing a new struggle: not enough food. Aid agencies warn that shrinking support and harsh weather are leaving children in the camps more exposed to hunger, illness and danger.
How Bad Is the Hunger?
Save the Children says 35% of Rohingya refugees are expected to face crisis or emergency levels of hunger in 2026. Around 25% are in crisis hunger (IPC Phase 3) between September and December, and about 10% could reach emergency levels (IPC Phase 4). IPC stands for the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, the global scale used to measure hunger. More than one million people live in around 30 camps in Cox’s Bazar, and over half of them are children.
Smaller Rations, Bigger Gaps
Food aid has been cut over the past year. Earlier, each person received about $12 a month in food assistance. Since April 2026, a tiered system has been in place. The extremely food-insecure get $12, the highly food-insecure get $10, and the food-insecure get $7 a month. According to IPS News, the last group makes up about 70% of the camp population.
Behind the cuts is a funding gap. The 2026 Joint Response Plan appeals for $710.5 million, the lowest in a decade, and it is only about 50% funded.
What Families Are Saying
Refugees say they can no longer afford basics. Mohammed Dullah, 59, said he cannot buy clothes, tuition fees, meat or fish as often as before. His 15-year-old son left school to earn about 6,000 taka (around $49) a month. Radia Bala, a 60-year-old widow, said her first need is food assistance and her second is shelter.
Children Pay the Highest Price
Hunger in mothers puts babies at risk too. Ramida, a 30-year-old mother of five, said she could not eat as she wanted because her husband did not have enough money. Her three-year-old son Rakib was born at low weight and was treated for severe acute malnutrition at a Save the Children hospital. Aid workers warn that poor maternal nutrition raises the risk of child deaths.
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Climate Extremes Add to the Danger
The camps are crowded and often built on steep, fragile land. Heavy monsoon rain in July triggered landslides that killed 10 children, including students and a teacher, according to Save the Children. Families with little food, weak shelters and limited water and sanitation have few ways to cope with floods, storms and heat.
Newcomers Face Extra Pressure
Nearly 1.2 million refugees live in Cox’s Bazar and Bhasan Char. Around 150,000 people who arrived between December 2024 and March 2026 are reported to be without shelter, which adds more strain on already limited services.
What Needs to Happen
Aid groups are calling for stronger and more reliable funding so that food rations, nutrition screening, maternal care and child health services do not shrink further. Without it, they warn, more children will fall into severe malnutrition and more families will take desperate risks.
