3 UN officials to visit Bangladesh to see Rohingyas

Three top United Nations officials will jointly visit Bangladesh from 24-26 April to highlight the ongoing need for support for the humanitarian needs of over a million Rohingyas living in Cox's Bazar.

The three officials are the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Filippo Grandi, the director general of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), Antonio Vitorino and the UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Mark Lowcock.

In the capital, Dhaka, the delegation will hold talks with senior government officials, including prime minister Sheikh Hasina and foreign minister AK Abdul Momen, to explore the ways the international community can provide further support to Bangladesh as hosts to the Rohingya, according to UNHCR.

The delegation will then travel to Cox's Bazar to meet with refugees, assess preparations underway ahead of the monsoon season and visit projects, including those involving food distribution and shelters.

They will also meet Rohingyas who are working as volunteers, and observe a UNHCR-Government of Bangladesh registration exercise, designed to provide identity cards to all refugees, ensuring their access to aid services and protection as well as establishing their right to return to Myanmar.

The aim of the visit is to highlight the need to continue strong international support for the humanitarian response while solutions for the Rohingya are pursued, including the creation of conditions in Myanmar's Rakhine State that would allow for the voluntary, safe and dignified return of refugees to their homes.