Providing Hygiene and Waste Management Support to Rohingya Refugees, Strengthening Livelihoods

Across the Cox’s Bazar camp settlement in the Kutupalong-Balukhali expansion site, Rohingya refugees face challenges in terms of access to essential services, critical non-food items (e.g. hygiene products, MHM kits), and income-generating opportunities. For female Rohingya refugees, the lack of income is particularly acute. The public health situation in camps remains dire for refugees due to significant WASH-related gaps such as limited waste management facilities, garbage accumulation in public places and drainage networks. These gaps aggravate the already fragile situation in camps in terms of public health risks, environmental degradation, and devastating natural disaster risks. Additionally, Rohingya women continue to report having insufficient and poor-quality menstrual hygiene items due to the inadequate access to hygiene and menstrual hygiene-related items. 

To sustainably improve the situation, Acted found inspiration from its previous pilot project funded by CDCS to conduct reusable sanitary pad production training, using locally available materials. The second step was to integrate the produced reusable hygienic pads to menstrual hygiene management kits distributed to women and girls in camps, covering for the existing high needs. Acted also wanted to support the waste management efforts in the camps through the creation of waste management brigades to improve waste collection and management systems and sensitize camp residents to sanitary waste management methods.  

In this project, Acted has trained 52 women on the reusable sanitary pad and undergarments production. They have produced 60,200 sanitary pads and 30,100 undergarments. Acted then distributed Menstrual Hygiene (MHM) kits, produced by women through Cash for Work (CfW) activities, to 9,000 menstruated women and girls. To enhance waste management Acted has engaged 39 Waste management brigade volunteers and conducted 36 hygiene campaigns throughout the project.

This project was initiated for the sanitary improvement of Cox’s Bazar’s Rohingya refugee camps 1E, 3, and 4. Skills–building training on producing reusable sanitary pads facilitated through the cash-for-work (CfW) modality was a significant livelihood activity for the project. Acted established a production center in UNHCR–managed camp 4 equipped with 46 machines and tools to continue production of Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM) kits following UNHCR recommendation. 52 trainees, all women, were selected with household verification support from Site Management Support (SMS) agencies of the respective camps. Organized in 2 batches of 26 participants each, the women started their skill development in sewing and machine operation for two months. The whole training programme was under expert supervision to prepare women for the production of the kits. 

Acted distributed the produced undergarments and sanitary pads to 1E, 3, and 4 camp residents. In January and May of 2024, the kits were distributed. Each kit contained reusable sanitary pads, undergarments, washing powder, cloth drying clips, a user manual, and eco-friendly paper bag. 60,200 sanitary pads and 30,100 undergarments were produced by the trained women and then distributed to 9,000 individuals.  

Beneficiaries for the distribution were selected based on vulnerable criteria outlined in the approved CDCS criteria, including single-headed households, persons with disabilities (PwD), women recently relocated from other camps, previous recipients of hygiene kits, households with no income source or inadequate family support to purchase menstrual materials, pregnant or lactating women, and women with specific needs. 

Acted has connected with 39 camp residents from the target camps to develop camp-level waste management brigades. The brigade members were responsible for disseminating information about waste management and hygiene awareness within the camp community. Among these members, some were from the Rohingya community and others from the host community residing near the camps. Acted had the camp’s brigade comprising members (50% women, 50% men) support waste collection. Through coordination with WASH partners in the targeted camps, Acted was assigned two subblocks from each camp for the waste management activities by the WASH sector and UNHCR out of 21 subblocks of these camps, ensuring a more impactful and efficient approach. For solid waste collection Acted installed 240 L dustbins with rollers and facilitated waste transport to primary dumping stations. Throughout the project, Acted collected 58,479 cubic feet of waste including 43,425 cubic feet organic and 15,054 cubic feet inorganic.  Acted conducted 36 cleaning campaigns in collaboration with the WASH sector during the project period and achieved significant community engagement and participation in the cleaning activities. The WASH management brigade members benefitted from financial support, following the guidelines of ISCG and the Bangladesh government. 

Acted conducted community focus group discussions to identify gaps and areas requiring cleaning efforts. Every week, the waste management brigade organized community sessions from Sunday to Thursday to raise awareness on hygiene within the community. 14,097 girls between 10-17 years old and 28,375 women over 18 years old were reached through information sessions held by the waste management brigade. Additionally, 11,563 boys between  10-17 years old and 24,696 men older than 18 were reached through the waste management brigade’s information sessions. These 78,731 individuals benefited from the hygiene-related information sessions and have effectively strengthened their knowledge on the topic.