TOKYO: Bhasan Char, an island about 60 km from Bangladesh’s mainland, is home to 35,000 Rohingyas fleeing persecution and violence in Myanmar.
The Bangladeshi government has been relocating them to the remote, cyclone-hit island from the town of Cox’s Bazar – one of the world’s largest refugee camps – since 2020.
The aim is to accommodate a total of 100,000 refugees in Bhasan Char, and they are getting help from Japanese non-profit group Nippon Foundation to do so.
The organisation will also help the refugees learn new skills. In December, it pledged US$3 million to that end.
Young men will learn to maintain and repair motorcycles, while women will be taught handicrafts and how to use a sewing machine.
After making his first visit to the island this month, Nippon Foundation chairman Yohei Sasakawa announced another US$2 million in funding.
“One day, when they go back to their hometown, we want them to be able to live independently. For that, we want them to acquire skills and to have a dream,” he told CNA.
He added that they will learn how to fish in the sea, how to breed sheep and chickens, and perform marine and modern farming.
