United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres landed in Bangladesh on Thursday to gauge the deteriorating living conditions of Rohingya refugees, following reports that aid is set to disappear as the US announces closure of USAID operations.
Bangladesh’s caretaker leader Muhammad Yunus and Foreign Affairs Adviser Touhid Hossain received Mr. Guterres at Dhaka’s main airport. The UN chief’s four-day visit is considered to be crucial to garner international backing and draw much-needed funds to support the Rohingya camps in Cox’s Bazar.
The World Food Program (WFP) has warned of a possibility of reducing food entitlements to Rohingya refugees by over 50% if foreign aid does not rise. Next month monthly rations could fall to just $6 a head – down from $12.50 – complicating already desperate living conditions. 
The interim government in Bangladesh, which came to power in August, is also seeking Prime Minister Guterres to bring global focus to the crisis, and thus the prevention of further setbacks to humanitarian. ‘We depend on the global community playing their part to stop more suffering’, said Hossain at the welcome ceremony.
Cox’s Bazar which is housing over a million Rohingya people, now has the world’s biggest refugee settlement. With impending funding gaps, humanitarian groups worry about a terrible toll on the vulnerable population.
Mr. Guterres is scheduled to visit refugee camps, meet with relief groups and hold talks with Bangladeshi officials to discuss long-term answers and immediate financing requirements.
