This is another common challenge for refugees living abroad. Life continues even as their lives feel like they’re on hold, and that leaves many in search of opportunities to pay for even the bare minimum of essentials that aren’t covered by aid.

This is perhaps one of the most universal experiences that refugees around the world share: the opposing yet connected desire to go home, but also to remain safe. Refugee camps and communities serve as a physical space for that contradictory state, because as much as many people want to go home, many also don’t.

Many camps are overcrowded, without the adequate sanitation infrastructure to match the number of residents, which often helps the spread of communicable diseases. Cholera, for example, is a waterborne illness that is endemic in Bangladesh, especially around the time of monsoon season. For the hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees living in... See more

Emergency response is part of Concern’s DNA and working with refugee communities in this context has become a core skill for our teams over the last six decades. We work with both refugee communities and host countries to ease the pressure that mass displacement can put on a host community. In addition to meeting the frontline needs — including... See more

“In the morning when we wake up, we have to go very far to get water, because we do not have a source of water close to us,” she says, adding that it’s also a challenge to get food. For her younger brothers, there is a child-friendly space set up for kids to play during the day before they receive primary lessons in the early evening. But for the... See more

arriving at a refugee camp can be a relief for the millions of people who make the difficult decision and dangerous journey to reach safety

For Kulsum in Cox’s Bazar, services like these are essential as the current Rohingya crisis becomes more protracted. She has given birth to two of her children in the camp, and relied on Concern’s nutrition center for her health as well as that of her children.

Within the first 72 hours of a displacement emergency, the UNHCR will work with local teams, partner organizations (including Concern), and local governments to set up safe humanitarian spaces for those being forced from home.