UNITED NATIONS, March 3 (Xinhua) -- UN agencies and their partners on Tuesday launched an appeal for 877 million U.S. dollars to help Rohingya refugees from Myanmar who are in Bangladesh, as well as the hosting communities, said a UN spokesman.
The aim is to help some 855,000 Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh and more than 444,000 vulnerable Bangladeshis in the communities which are generously hosting these refugees, said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
More than half of the money will be for vital services and assistance, such as access to food, shelter, clean water and sanitation, he said.
This marks the third year of exile for most Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh. They are clear that they want to return home, but only when they and their families will be safe, can access basic rights and see a pathway to citizenship in Myanmar, said the spokesman.
More than 745,000 Rohingya have fled from Myanmar's Rakhine State to Bangladesh since August 2017, escaping violence in Myanmar and joining earlier Myanmar refugees already displaced by previous cycles of violence.
Most of the refugees do not have proof of Myanmar citizenship and are reluctant to return.
