December 2018 – Following the outbreak of violence in Northern Rakhine State in August 2017, more than 735,000 Rohingya crossed from Myanmar into Bangladesh over a period of several months.These refugees joined an estimated 200,000 to 300,000 Rohingya already in Bangladesh following earlier waves of displacement. The majority of the refugees are women and children. With GAC’s support, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) aims to improve the health and safety of vulnerable populations in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, by providing access to a wide range of services to women, adolescent girls and refugees at large. Activities include: (1) establishing three women and girls safe spaces offering basic sexual and reproductive health services, psychosocial support and gender-based violence case management; and (2) establishing a basic emergency and neonatal care center that provides a more comprehensive package of sexual and reproductive health services, including obstetrics care.
The expected outcomes for this project include: (1) increased access for vulnerable women and adolescent girls to gender-based violence prevention and response services; and (2) increased access for women and girls to timely and effective sexual and reproductive health services. The expected ultimate outcome is lives saved, suffering alleviated and human dignity maintained in countries experiencing humanitarian crisis or that are facing acute food insecurity.