Kelly T. Clements, the UN Deputy High Commissioner for Refugees, concluded a four-day visit to Bangladesh. While in Cox’s Bazar, she met with local officials to discuss the ongoing operational response and opportunities to further aid Bangladeshi communities generously hosting refugees.

More than 500,000 Rohingya refugees from Myanmar have been registered in a joint registration exercise by the Bangladesh authorities and UNHCR. For many of these refugees, it is the first time they have an identity card.

UNHCR and other UN agencies worked around the clock to repair damage, temporarily relocate affected refugees, and activate disaster response plans following eight days of unrelenting rain and wind - the most severe weather since the massive Rohingya refugee influx of 2017. Between 4 and 12 July, 709mm of rain fell in parts of the Kutupalong refugee settlement, out of a July average of about 1040mm for Cox’s Bazar. A combination of landslides, floods and wind damaged or destroyed hundreds of structures and temporarily displaced thousands of refugees.

World Refugee Day was marked in Kutupalong refugee settlement. Refugees and UNHCR welcomed the participation of the U.S. Ambassador to Bangladesh, H.E. Earl R. Miller, who participated in a walk to support a StepsWithRefugees campaign to highlight the plight of refugees worldwide who need to make often long and difficult journeys to reach safety each year. A Rohingya women's group arranged a photographic exhibition and refugee community groups led and organised games and events for the day, alongside many of the organisations working in the response.

Over a quarter of a million Rohingya refugees from Myanmar have now been jointly registered and provided with identity cards by the Bangladesh authorities and UNHCR.

PAKISTAN: Lahore, UNHCR Pakistan Representative, Ruvendrini Menikdiwela received Shaukat Khanam Memorial Cancer Hospital Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Awards 2018 in Lahore from Majeeb-ur-Rehman Shami. UNHCR donated USD 6.2 million for radiotherapy machines for SKMCH Peshawar to support free-of-cost treatment to cancer patients, including Afghan refugees.

United Nations aid agencies and NGO partners launched the 2019 Joint Response Plan (JRP) for the Rohingya humanitarian crisis. The appeal seeks to raise US$920 million to meet the massive needs of more than 900,000 refugees from Myanmar and over 330,000 vulnerable Bangladeshis in host communities. UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi called for timely, predictable and flexible contributions in order to meet the goals of this year’s appeal.

After spending two days visiting Cox's Bazar, Angelina Jolie, Special Envoy of UNHCR, met with Bangladesh's Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen, in which she expressed UNHCR’s gratitude to the people and Government of Bangladesh for their generosity in receiving Rohingya refugees. She reiterated UNHCR’s support for collective efforts to enable Rohingya refugees to live dignified lives in Bangladesh and the pursuit of lasting solutions.

In a statement, UNHCR expresses its deep appreciation to and solidarity with Bangladesh for its generosity in continuing to host and support nearly one million Rohingya refugees on its territory and its continued commitment to protecting refugees’ right to safe, voluntary and dignified return to their homes in Myanmar. UNHCR appealed to Myanmar to exert all efforts to create conditions conducive for voluntary return and address the root causes of the refugees’ displacement, in line with the recommendations of the Kofi Annan-led Advisory Commission on Rakhine State.

UNHCR hosted a gathering with political leaders from four continents, including Bangladesh, Costa Rica, Turkey and the World Bank at the UN General Assembly High Level Week in support of the global compact on refugees, a robust and systematic model to improve the lives of refugees and their host communities. The High Commissioner praised the role of host countries as first responders to refugee emergencies, like Bangladesh. The compact is expected to be endorsed in December 2018.