By RK Desk | Cox’s Bazar | November 13, 2026
Rohingya families receiving the lowest level of monthly food assistance in Cox’s Bazar say they are relying largely on rice and lentils as fish, eggs and vegetables become harder to afford. Their accounts, published by The Daily Star on Friday, describe how some households are managing on US$7 per person a month. Separately, Bangladesh has asked the United Kingdom to step up diplomatic efforts for the safe and voluntary return of Rohingya refugees to Myanmar.
Families say $7 is hard to stretch through the month
Anowara Begum, who fled Myanmar in 2017, told The Daily Star that her family of five now receives $7 per person a month, down from $12. Her husband has kidney disease and cannot work, leaving her to borrow food or money from neighbours. The newspaper could not establish whether his illness was taken into account when the household’s allowance was set. Other refugees said they were relying heavily on rice and lentils because they struggled to afford a wider range of foods.
The World Food Programme (WFP) introduced its tiered system in April. In Cox’s Bazar, households receive $12, $10 or $7 per person each month, depending on WFP’s assessment of their food insecurity. The corresponding amounts on Bhasan Char are $13, $11 and $8, reflecting higher market costs. WFP said it designed the system to direct more assistance to households facing the greatest barriers to meeting their food needs and said funding shortages did not drive the change.
WFP told The Daily Star that 33 percent of refugees received the highest level of assistance, 50 percent received the middle level and 17 percent received the lowest. Its monitoring found that 70 percent of surveyed households met its benchmark for acceptable food consumption, compared with 73 percent in 2025. The agency said dietary quality remained a concern, especially for women and young children, and that households receiving the lowest allowance had more difficulty making it last through the month.
Bangladesh asks the UK to step up diplomacy on Rohingya return
Prime Minister Tarique Rahman asked British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband on November 12 for a more active UK diplomatic role in creating conditions for Rohingya refugees to return safely, voluntarily and with dignity to Myanmar. They met in Antalya, Türkiye, on the sidelines of the COP31 climate conference. The talks also covered climate adaptation, migration and economic ties, Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha reported.
Rahman raised the issue in a separate meeting with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese earlier that day. The Bangladeshi accounts of the two meetings gave no details of new British or Australian commitments on repatriation.
