Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus and UN Secretary-General António Guterres, is scheduled to visit the Rohingya camp in Cox’s Bazar on 14 March as the UN chief is set to embark on Bangladesh visit as part of his annual Ramadan solidarity tour, reports UNB.
Guterres will also take part in an Iftar meal with refugees and members of the Bangladeshi host community, recognising the generosity of Bangladesh in sheltering nearly one million Rohingya who fled persecution and violence in Myanmar.
The Chief Adviser will leave Dhaka for Cox’s Bazar in the morning 14 March and return to Dhaka in the evening on the same day, said a senior government official.
As part of his annual Ramadan solidarity visit, Guterres will be here in Dhaka from 13 to 16 March where he will meet Rohingya refugees in Cox’s Bazar, one of the world’s largest refugee settlements, his Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said.
During his visit, he will also visit the capital, Dhaka, where he will meet Chief Adviser Prof Muhammed Yunus, as well as young representatives from civil society.
The Secretary-General has made solidarity visits an annual tradition, beginning during his decade-long tenure as UN High Commissioner for Refugees, when he regularly observed Ramadan alongside displaced and marginalized communities.
“Every Ramadan, I undertake a solidarity visit and fast with a Muslim community around the globe. These missions remind the world of the true face of Islam,” Guterres said in his message.
“Ramadan embodies the values of compassion, empathy and generosity. It is an opportunity to reconnect with family and community…And I always come away even more inspired by the remarkable sense of peace that fills this season,” he added.
UN chief Guterres, in a recent letter to Yunus, expressed his hope that the high-level conference on Rohingya Muslims and other minorities in Myanmar will renew global focus and help develop broader solutions for their plight.
The United Nations will continue to mobilise the international community to support Bangladesh as a host to the Rohingya, Guterres said.
“I will continue to exercise my good offices, including through my Special Envoy on the Republic of the Union of Myanmar, to work closely with regional actors, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) and other stakeholders, towards a political solution to the crisis in Myanmar, including creating conditions conducive to the safe and voluntary return of the Rohingya to Rakhine,” he wrote.
The UN chief has requested his senior managers to provide guidance to the United Nations Country Teams in Bangladesh and Myanmar on how they can maximize humanitarian aid and livelihood support to communities in Rakhine.
The United Nations will prioritise engagement on this issue, including through the Emergency Relief Coordinator and the Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, in Myanmar, to enable safe, rapid, sustained and unhindered humanitarian access to those in need in Rakhine and throughout Myanmar.”
“We await the agreed outcomes and plans for the conference, following Member State consultations, to understand how the United Nations system can best support the process.”
He thanked Yunus for his letter, dated 4 February 2025, which was shared with him by High Representative for the Rohingya Crisis and Priority Affairs Khalilur Rahman during their meeting on 7 February.
The UN chief also reiterated the strong solidarity of the United Nations with Bangladesh and their support for the transition process under Yunus’ leadership.
He said he shared Bangladesh’s concerns regarding the impact of the Rohingya crisis on Bangladesh and the region, as well as the worsening humanitarian situation in Rakhine.
Bd-Pratidin English/ AM
