After suffering from the brutal summer heat and the monsson rain, Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh are now bracing themselves for a merciless Winter. Most of the refugees who escaped the military crackdown entered Bangladesh with only a few clothes among their possessions. They do not have proper shelter, nor do they have proper clothing to support themselves in this winter. The temperature is dropping and the menacing cold wave is not far from reaching the southern regions of the country. With the experience in field from last October, we will be sheltering the refugees with blankets this time, in shaa Allah.

The Rohingya

As of 04 December, the estimated number of the Rohingya refugees across the Cox’s Bazar is 838,000. The influx began on 25 August, after the Myanmar Army launched security operations in northern Rakhine state. In September, an average of approximately 14,500 people arrived daily. This dropped to an approximate average of 3,100 arrivals per day in October. 

The people who have arrived in Bangladesh since 25 August came with very few possessions. They have used most their savings on transportation and constructing a shelter, often out of no more than bamboo and thin plastic. Winter is almost here. And with the poor facility of shelter and deficiency of winter clothes, the survival in winter is menacing.

"The cold will be much intense this time"

Abdur Rahman, a senior meteorologist at the Department of Meteorology, said  "Cold will be much intense this time" to benews24.com. 
Cold waves cause some severe damage, distress and disruption for the affected people. The temperature is dropping irregularly, below 15 Celsius is seen frequently in the northern region. It is not far that the southern part reaches the same distress. Forecast says the temperature may drop to 4 Celsius in the mid of December. Though in numbers it may not seem particularly low, but Bangladesh is a tropical country. The average temperature in the capital Dhaka is around 22 Celsius. And the people here are not prepared for these situations, especially the Rohingya refugees who have no form warm clothes.

$5 for one blanket

Blankets are the most effective tool to tackle from cold as two, sometimes even three, can easily take shelter from one blanket and there is no hassle in matching size. We maintain high quality blankets with minimum production cost, and this $5 includes transportation cost. Your little help can give shelter to the neediest people against this winter.

Don’t let the opportunity of Sadaqah Jariyah go away

Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported:

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "When a man dies, his deeds come to an end except for three things: Sadaqah Jariyah (ceaseless charity); a knowledge which is beneficial, or a virtuous descendant who prays for him (for the deceased)." [Muslim]

So, don’t miss this opportunity of Sadaqah Jariyah.

Project Kombol: Who We Are

Project Kombol is an initiative taken by two civil society organizations, BANDHU Foundation and Garbo Bangladesh Foundation, which has a vast network covering 34 districts.

Using this network, we are connecting Dhaka based social development projects with NGOs operating outside Dhaka. Armed with local knowledge, these local NGOs will help identify and distribute tokens among vulnerable individuals and communities who suffer the most during a natural or man-made disaster. They will facilitate the clothing distribution process, and make all arrangements for proper distribution before the clothing drive teams arrive from Dhaka.

Click here to see our last successful LG campaign.

The team in Rohingya camp

This October we went to the Rohingya refugee camp and distributed relief baskets, set up tube wells and toilets. The camp went dark when after the sunset, and some opportunists took the advantage of the situation. As a result, child trafficking and women harassment increased. In response to this heinous activity, we went to Jamtoli camp to set up 21 solar lamp posts. Now, we are striving to fight against the coming winter.

Media coverage

Rohingya situation by CNN: https://goo.gl/wCZ8VE

Rohingya situation by The Atlantic: https://goo.gl/FK2BuZ

Winter in Rohingya camps by Dhaka Tribune: https://goo.gl/LTkKv9

Cold-wave hitting Bangladesh by bdnews24: https://goo.gl/p3kn3w

Rohingya situation report by ISCG: https://goo.gl/tsAEpt

Bangladesh Meteorological Department