‘I want my daughters to be educated’: how Rohingya women refugees are taking charge of their own futures

Anwara (left), who fled Myanmar six years ago, is now a site manager at the Cox’s Bazar camp. Showkat (right), also from Myanmar, works for ActionAid as a safety unit volunteer at the camp. Photograph: Fabeha Monir/ActionAid

When Anwara fled her home in Myanmar six years ago, the youngest of her three daughters was still only a babe in arms. They were part of a group of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees who crossed the border looking for safety. After walking for several days, they arrived in Cox’s Bazar in south-east Bangladesh, a makeshift settlement that is now home to nearly 1 million Rohingya refugees. Life in the camps is hard, Anwara says. But at least it is providing some security for her family. “When we came from Myanmar, we suffered a lot. We didn’t have any money, shelter or food. Now we have a house to live in and receive food rations every month.”

Rohingya refugees are in a precarious situation as they have not been formally granted refugee status, so they’re unable to work and integrate with the community outside the camps. Prospects for their return to Myanmar have continued to decrease as levels of violence have risen across the country.