Fines for tampering with electricity meter range between SR5000 and SR100000 New amendments made in Electricity Law    Saudi Arabia deports 8,051 illegal residents in a week    Saudi Arabia is among world's top donors with assistance worth SR528 billion    GCC – Japan negotiations make progress in sealing free trade agreement    Inzaghi hails Al Hilal's fearless Club World Cup run    UNRWA calls for urgent fuel delivery to Gaza to prevent shutdown of basic services    Syria rules out foreign borrowing as central bank hails post-Assad recovery    Pakistan army kills 30 militants in cross-border clash near Afghanistan    State of emergency declared in Crete after wildfire devastates Ierapetra    OPEC+ further accelerates oil output hike by 548,000 bpd in August    Football world mourns Diogo Jota and brother André Silva at funeral in Portugal    Al Hilal exit Club World Cup after narrow defeat to Fluminense    Saudi Arabia tops global ICT Development Index for 2025    Hotel occupancy in Saudi Arabia rises to 63% as tourism workforce tops 983,000 in Q1 2025    Alkhorayef Commercial Company partners with XSQUARE Technologies to elevate logistics automation in Saudi Arabia    Portugal and Liverpool FC winger Diogo Jota dies in car accident in Spain    Michael Madsen, actor of 'Kill Bill' and 'Reservoir Dogs' fame, dead at 67    BTS are back: K-pop band confirm new album and tour    Michelin Guide launches in Saudi Arabia with phased rollout in 2025    'How fragile we are': Roskilde Festival tragedy remembered 25 years on    Sholay: Bollywood epic roars back to big screen after 50 years with new ending    Ministry launches online booking for slaughterhouses on eve of Eid Al-Adha    Shah Rukh Khan makes Met Gala debut in Sabyasachi    Pakistani star's Bollywood return excites fans and riles far right    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Support stepped up for Rohingya camps as first COVID-19 infections confirmed
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 15 - 05 - 2020

After confirmation that the first cases of COVID-19 infection have been identified in a vast and overcrowded refugee camp in Bangladesh, UN humanitarians on Friday announced additional measures and appealed for funds to prevent the disease from spreading.
In Geneva, UN refugee agency (UNHCR) spokesperson Andrej Mahecic relayed government confirmation that one Rohingya refugee had tested positive for the new coronavirus, in the Kutapalong settlement in Cox's Bazar, along with an individual from the local Bangladeshi host community.
"There are serious concerns about the potentially severe impact of the virus in a densely populated refugee settlement, sheltering some 860,000 Rohingya refugees", he said, speaking via videconference.
"Another 400,000 Bangladeshis live in the surrounding host communities. These populations are considered to be among the most at risk globally in this pandemic."
Concerted UN action
UN agencies have already put in place a series of concerted COVID-19 contingency measures in Cox's Bazar, including the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
It has provided upgraded triage areas in 35 primary care facilities along with three isolation and treatment centers. Also nearing completion is a quarantine center, large enough to accommodate 465 people and 250 beds for people suffering from severe acute respiratory infection.
Although the arrival of the pandemic was expected, it adds further pressure on extremely vulnerable individuals preparing for the approaching monsoon season.
Grim anniversary for Rohingya
This coming August marks three years since the mainly ethnic Rohingya in Cox's Bazar fled violent persecution in neighboring Myanmar's Rakhine state. Last year, 16,000 people were affected in a single 24-hour period during one of the heaviest downpours.
To help, the World Food Program (WFP) is busy clearing drains and stabilizing slopes that have the potential to give way in heavy rain.
The agency has warned that COVID-19 threatens to reverse development gains made by Bangladesh in the last 50 years and has appealed for $320 million to help the most vulnerable.
$320 million needed for Rohingya, struggling Bangladeshis
Some $200 million of this funding is required for the agency's COVID-19 response in Bangladesh and the remaining $120 million is needed to help the mainly-Muslim ethnic Rohingya for the next six months.
"Lockdowns and restrictions in movement are affecting livelihoods of millions across Bangladesh, especially daily wage earners like rickshaw drivers, day laborers who now find themselves unable to meet their basic needs," said WFP spokesperson Elisabeth Byrs.
Under WFP's scheme, the funding will ensure food security for families in rural areas and urban slums, as well as day laborers.
In the meantime, the agency has maintained national distributions of fortified rice, cash transfers and nutrition programs, to complement government assistance.
It has also begun building storage areas for food and non-food items necessary for the COVID-19 response, including personal protective equipment, and is helping other humanitarian agencies by moving supplies into and around Bangladesh. — UN News


Clic here to read the story from its source.