UNDP - United Nations Development Programme

Purpose

The project aims to secure a safe and healthy environment for the affected host community population in Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh. It aims to do so by: (1) addressing their urgent cooking fuel needs; (2) improving their economic livelihoods and food security; and (3) rehabilitating the natural resource base while preventing further environmental degradation in the region. Being one of the world’s largest refugee camps, Cox’s Bazar has hosted an unprecedented number of Rohingya since August 2017. This is putting immense pressure on scarce natural resources in the area, resulting in degraded natural forests, barren hills and an emerging water crisis. This situation calls for responses in order to help restore the environment and ecosystem, as well as measures to prevent further degradation and to support early restoration. The project objectives include supplying alternative clean cooking fuel and technology to women-headed households; providing livelihood and income generation support, particularly to vulnerable women and girls; and fostering environmental practices to reduce pollution and encourage sustainable natural resource management. Project activities include: