The role of the Bangladesh Red Crescent Society (BDRCS) in aiding Rohingya refugees in the country came in for praise from foreign minister Abul Hasan Mahmood Ali yesterday.
Speaking on the occasion of the closing ceremony of the two-day-long partnership meeting of the BDRCS, Mahmood Ali said: “The Red Crescent Society in Bangladesh has extended its hand in providing humanitarian aid to one of the most oppressed people of the world.”
The foreign minister said BDRCS has always played an active role in providing help and support to the vulnerable and oppressed communities of Bangladesh.
He expressed hope the society would keep doing so in future.
About the two-day-long partnership meeting, BDRCS secretary-general Mazharul Haq said, “The overall objective of this meeting is to extend the horizon of partnership and mutual cooperation among diverse sectors and actors towards making the most vulnerable community resilient.
BDRCS targets to reach at least 10 million people through various programmes. Also, 11 million coastal people of Bangladesh, who are in the most vulnerable condition, would be brought under various BDRCS programmes so that their resilience can be strengthened.”
He disclosed that as per the new strategic plan for 2017–20, BDRCS will require CHF 61 million (USD 62 million) to carry out its different disaster management and aid programmes in Bangladesh. Of this, 45 per cent will be provided from BDRCS's own funds over the next four years.