An Agenda for a Dignified and Sustainable Rohingya Refugee Response in Bangladesh Protection mainstreaming focal points have so far been embedded in three sectors- WASH, SMSD and Health.202 4.1.2.3 NGO coordination Alongside the Bangladeshi authorities, the local community of Cox’s Bazar and Bangladeshi NGOs within and outside Cox’s Bazar district and community-based organisations (CBOs), played a critical role in providing immediate support to Rohingya refugees in the days following the August 2017 influx. At the time, a handful of international NGOs were operational in Cox’s Bazar. Over the next few weeks, UN agencies and more international NGOs stepped in to support the humanitarian emergency. In 2020, 117 partners were part of the Joint Response Plan, including 8 UN agencies, 61 Bangladeshi NGOs and 48 international NGOs. The Red Cross and Red Crescent movement and Medecins Sans Frontiers (MSF) are also supporting the response along with many other civil society, faith-based organisations and government agencies.203 During the early phase of the emergency response in 2017, the ISCG had an NGO liaison function204 within its Secretariat to support NGO coordination. Subsequently, responding to the need expressed by some agencies to have an independent NGO coordination mechanism as is common in many humanitarian emergencies, the Bangladesh Rohingya Response NGO Platform was established in mid2018, with the objective of strengthening NGO coordination and joint advocacy in the response. In parallel, the Cox’s Bazar CSO NGO Forum (CCNF), a network of more than 50 Bangladeshi CSOs working in the Rohingya refugee response in Cox’s Bazar is also playing a critical role in NGO coordination. CCNF focuses on strengthening local civil society and, upholding localisation and accountability principles. CCNF also works in close coordination with Bangladeshi authorities. Several of the CCNF member organisations are local Cox’s Bazar based NGOs and many of them are also members of the NGO Platform. COAST Trust, one of the CCNF Co-Chairs, is a member of the SEG and represents NGO issues in humanitarian coordination along with the NGO Platform Coordinator and two other international NGOs. 4.1.3 Camp level 4.1.3.1 Government of Bangladesh At the camp level, civil servants are appointed on a rotational basis as Camp-in-Charges (CiCs) by RRRC. 205 The CiCs are drawn from different government departments for the daily administration and delivery of assistance in the camps. CiCs are the key decision-makers at the camp level and exert significant influence over all camp-based actors. In principle, they are accountable to the RRRC. However, humanitarian agencies have reported challenges at the camp level wherein discretionary and ad-hoc decisions by CiCs in relation to arbitrary information requests inconsistent with agreed reporting guidelines with RRRC, imposition of new and uncertain rules for camp-based operations and project implementation, temporary or permanent blockage of activities and organisations without 202 2020 COVID-19 Plan, supra n. 154. 2018 Joint Response Plan- Rohingya Humanitarian Crisis Bangladesh, available at https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/JRP%20for%20Rohingya%20Humanitarian%20Crisis%20%20FOR%20DISTRIBUTION.PDF 204 ISCG, NGO Coordination and Support Cell – Terms of Reference and Work Plan, 7 November 2017, available at https://www.humanitarianresponse.info/sites/www.humanitarianresponse.info/files/documents/files/tor_ngo_coordinati on_and_support_cell.pdf 205 ACAPS-NPM, Rohingya Crisis-Governance and community participation, July 2018, available at https://www.acaps.org/sites/acaps/files/products/files/20180606_acaps_npm_report_camp_governance_final_0.pdf 203 Act for Peace / May 2021 45