by Hafizur Rahman
March 17, 2026
The number of Rohingya refugees living in the camps of Cox’s Bazar has increased by nearly 179,000 over the past year, reaching 1,184,864 people as of February 28, 2026, according to a new report by UNHCR.
The report shows that the population grew from around 1,006,107 in the previous year, marking an increase of 178,757 people.
Officials say the rise is driven by both new arrivals from Arakan, Myanmar and a high number of births inside the camps.
A Bangladesh government official, Md Kamruzzaman, said that approximately 30,000 to 35,000 children are born in the camps each year. He added that new Rohingya families continue to arrive at different times throughout the year.
According to the report, around 144,456 people in the increase were new arrivals, while 34,301 were newborn children.
The report also noted that many Rohingya were forced to flee their homes in Myanmar during 2024 due to ongoing conflict and violence. These new arrivals have been identified but are not yet fully registered. For now, they receive family cards that allow access to basic assistance such as food and shelter.
The number of Rohingya families has also increased significantly. There are now 246,415 families living in the camps, compared to 204,303 families one year earlier.
The Rohingya crisis escalated sharply in 2017, when the Myanmar Junta carried out a large scale military crackdown that forced more than one million Rohingya to flee to Bangladesh.
Aid agencies warn that the growing population is placing increasing pressure on already overcrowded camps, raising urgent needs for food, healthcare, shelter, and other essential services.
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