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• February 12, 2026

# Giving Hope to Underprivileged Children: Supporting the Rohingya and Local Communities in Bangladesh

In the sprawling refugee camps of Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, approximately half a million Rohingya children live in a state of profound uncertainty . These children, who fled persecution in Myanmar alongside their families, represent one of the world’s most vulnerable populations. Alongside them, Bangladeshi children in nearby host communities face their own struggles with poverty and limited opportunity. Yet amid these challenges, efforts to give hope to underprivileged children continue through education, protection, and community-based support.

## The Crisis of Lost Childhoods

The situation for Rohingya children has grown increasingly dire. Following significant foreign aid reductions in 2025, thousands of schools and learning centres across the camps were forced to close . The consequences have been devastating. Girls as young as 12 have been pushed into marriage, children as young as 10 forced into backbreaking manual labour, and reports of abduction and kidnapping among children have more than quadrupled .

Hasina, a 17-year-old Rohingya girl, represents countless children whose dreams have been shattered. Before her school closed, she excelled in English and aspired to become a teacher. Now, following a forced marriage, she remains confined to her shelter, her future stolen . As she poignantly states, “If the school hadn’t closed, I wouldn’t be trapped in this life” .

## Education as a Lifeline

For these children, education represents far more than learning—it is protection, purpose, and possibility. Currently, only about 16% of children aged 3–14 and a mere 19% of adolescents aged 15–24 have access to education in the camps . Those fortunate enough to attend school receive just three hours of instruction daily, far below what is needed .

Yet there are bright spots. Community-based high schools, organised by Rohingya volunteers, supplement formal education. Fifteen-year-old Hamima Begum attends both an aid-run school and a community class, dreaming of college and a future studying “human rights, justice, and peace” . Her determination to “someday help my community in their repatriation” reveals how education nurtures not just individual hope but collective resilience .

## Supporting Local Bangladeshi Communities

Hope must also extend to Bangladeshi children in host communities surrounding the camps. These communities have generously sheltered nearly a million refugees but face their own challenges, including poverty and limited infrastructure. Organizations like Terre des hommes implement child protection programmes reaching both refugee and host community children, providing psychosocial support, life skills training, and gender-based violence response services .

Street Child Bangladesh works with local partners in Dhaka, Chittagong, and Cox’s Bazar, supporting education, mental health, and life skills for marginalised Bangladeshi children . Their approach recognises that strengthening host communities creates a more sustainable environment for all children.

## A Path Forward

Recent developments offer cautious hope. In February 2026, the Bangladeshi government approved a UNICEF-led education programme that will provide pre-primary and primary education to over 256,000 Rohingya children in their mother tongue . This initiative, supported by the World Bank, will recruit thousands of volunteer teachers from within the camps, creating educational opportunities while building community capacity .

Giving hope to underprivileged children requires more than temporary interventions. It demands sustained commitment to education as a fundamental right, protection services that keep children safe from exploitation, and recognition that both Rohingya and Bangladeshi children deserve futures filled with possibility rather than fear.

As one Rohingya father who sacrifices part of his food rations for his children’s tuition explains, “Bangladesh is a small country with limited opportunities. I’m glad that they have been hosting us” . His gratitude reminds us that hope flourishes when communities—and the international community—choose to invest in children, regardless of their origin.

The children of the Rohingya camps and Bangladesh’s host communities dream of becoming pilots, doctors, and engineers . With continued support, those dreams need not fade.