Life inside the Kutupalong Rohingya refugee camp in Bangladesh

September 12, 2025

Following his college graduation, 23-year-old photographer Daniel Bainbridge documented the conditions of approximately 18,000 Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh's Kutupalong camp. Bainbridge's mission was to humanize the refugees rather than defining them solely by their suffering, aiming to draw attention to this urgent humanitarian crisis through photography and first-person accounts. He observed severe overcrowding, inadequate food supplies, limited education opportunities, and environmental hazards such as flooding in the camp, where refugees rely almost entirely on aid rations.

Who is affected

Approximately 18,000 Rohingya people in the Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh
An estimated one million Rohingya refugees across Bangladesh's camps
Rohingya families struggling with basic necessities
Young Rohingya people who have "virtually no career prospects" due to lack of higher education and legal restrictions on working outside camps
Refugees affected by inadequate healthcare, clean water shortages, and vulnerability to fires and flooding

What action is being taken

Daniel Bainbridge is documenting daily life in the Kutupalong refugee camp and sharing these photos to raise awareness
Some refugees are growing crops within the limited space available
Primary schools are operating within the camp
Aid organizations are providing rations that refugees rely on almost entirely for sustenance
Limited healthcare services are being provided, though described as "far from sufficient"

Why it matters

The Rohingya have faced decades of discrimination and persecution in Myanmar, culminating in a brutal 2017 crackdown
Myanmar's military junta refuses to recognize the Rohingya as an ethnic group, making repatriation nearly impossible
Conditions in the refugee camps continue to deteriorate despite appeals for international aid
The camp faces severe overcrowding, insufficient food, inadequate healthcare, and waterborne diseases
Without international attention and support, the refugees lack basic necessities and future prospects

What's next

No explicit next steps stated in the article, though Bainbridge suggests that safe repatriation is the ultimate goal while acknowledging it remains extremely challenging in the current political climate.

Read full article from source: Global Voices