Swedish Ambassador to Bangladesh Nicolas Weeks on Thursday announced an additional USD 2.1 million or Tk 25.7 crore to save lives and support the green return to Cox’s Bazar.
The contribution, announced ahead of World Refugee Day 2025, will support the provision of cleaner cooking energy to Rohingya refugees, the continued rehabilitation of the environment and the facilitation of enhanced green skills development for refugees and Bangladeshi host communities, said the Embassy of Sweden in Dhaka.
These activities are part of the Safe Access to Fuel and Energy Plus, phase 2 programme (SAFE+2), a joint UN programme which brings together the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), and the World Food Programme (WFP), in coordination with the Government of Bangladesh.
“With drastically decreasing funds, we need to prioritize those with the most severe needs and focus on saving lives, while upholding achievements made over the past few years,” said Nicolas Weeks.
Nicolas went on to say, “This contribution will allow refugees to continue cooking with cleaner fuel, preserving the forest and their health. Until they can return to Myanmar in a voluntary, safe, dignified and sustainable way, I am proud that Sweden stands in solidarity with Rohingya refugees and their Bangladeshi hosts, promoting human dignity and environmental stewardship.”
Sweden has supported the SAFE+ programme since it was first initiated in 2019.
The distribution of Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG) and fuel-efficient cooking equipment has enabled an energy transition away from firewood and associated deforestation.
Since 2019, more than 2,300 hectares of forest have been brought back to life in Cox’s Bazar. Where there was once bare, degraded land, trees are rising, their roots stabilizing the hilly terrain of the camps and reducing the risk of erosion and deadly landslides.
The distribution of LPG has also protected more than 14,500 hectares of forest and prevented the emission of more than 370,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide compared to the utilization of firewood.
With this contribution, Swedish support to the SAFE+ initiative totals USD 21 million, or Tk 256.3 crore.
In total, Sweden has supported the Rohingya refugees and host communities in Cox’s Bazar with over USD 136.7 million, or Tk 1,667 crore, since 2017.
“After nearly eight years in exile, rapidly decreasing financial resources and in the absence of an immediate resolution and peace in Rakhine state, I am deeply concerned that hope among the Rohingya community is fading. This World Refugee Day, I would like to let refugees know that we see you. You are not forgotten. You are not alone,” said Nicolas Weeks.
World Refugee Day is an international day designated by the United Nations to honour refugees around the globe.
It falls each year on 20 June and shines a light on the rights, needs and dreams of those forced to flee.