By SM Najmus Sakib
DHAKA, Bangladesh (AA) – Bangladesh’s foreign minister on Tuesday said the World Bank would provide $700 million for the forcibly displaced Myanmar Rohingya nationals and host communities in Cox’s Bazar, the southeast coast of Bangladesh.
Addressing a news conference after holding a meeting with UN lender country head Abdoulaye Seck in the capital Dhaka, Hasan Mahmud said of the total, $315 million will be meant for the Rohingya refugees and the remaining $385 million will be provided for the host community in Cox’s Bazar as soft loan.
About 1.2 million refugees are currently taking shelter in Cox’s Bazar. The majority of Rohingya living in Bangladesh fled a brutal military crackdown in Rakhine, Myanmar in 2017.
The minister said he met with his Myanmar counterpart recently in Uganda on the sidelines of the Non-Aligned Movement summit.
Myanmar remained positive about initiating Rohingya repatriation, he added.