An Agenda for a Dignified and Sustainable Rohingya Refugee Response in Bangladesh host communities, they are international to and different from Rohingya refugees from Myanmar despite some cultural and linguistic similarities.263 With reduced humanitarian footprint in the camps during the COVID-19 pandemic, Rohingya refugee volunteers along with their Bangladeshi counterparts were at the frontline supporting lifesaving programmes such as health, water and sanitation, food distribution and COVID-19 awareness. Yet, they were not recognised as legitimate humanitarian actors and noted a lack of trust and open communication with humanitarian actors and did not feel included in decision-making processes that affected their daily lives.264 Restrictions on access to basic rights such as education and livelihoods has increased the burden on Bangladesh to provide care and maintenance, increased insecurity, needs and vulnerabilities, prolonged the cycle of abuse and discrimination and disempowered the Rohingya from building and using important life skills productively that would contribute to self-sufficiency, empowerment, and eventual achievement of durable solutions. The lack of meaningful participation of refugees in key initiatives has eroded trust and posed challenges for programme implementation increasing tensions and instability in the camps. Declining engagement with community-based and community-led initiatives by Bangladeshi authorities and humanitarian actors is a barrier towards promoting a community-based protection approach, a key goal of the JRP. Within the scope of the humanitarian programmes, there is space for identifying and expanding community representation and leadership by recognising and supporting grassroots initiatives and gradually mainstreaming their participation in formal camp-level and sector coordination mechanisms. To address the impact of the large-scale presence of Rohingya refugees in the district, there is a need for more in-depth consultations with the host communities living in Ukhiya and Teknaf to gain a stronger understanding of their needs which are distinct from the needs of Rohingya refugees who are living with restricted access to rights and services in camp settings. To ensure optimal use of limited resources, the effectiveness of such short-term interventions in addressing the broader developmental needs of the district must also be duly assessed. The Grand Bargain and Global Compact on Refugees (GCR) recognise the positive impact that the systematic engagement of community-based organisations can have in supporting humanitarian responses. The current humanitarian framework has to make significant adjustments to its strict vetting processes and partnership standards to ensure the formal inclusion of refugee and host community voices in decision-making processes and redress the imbalances in the relationship between refugees and aid providers.265 263 Holloway, supra n. 262. Zahid Uddin and Arshat Ullah, Rohingya Experiences of Covid-19 in Cox’s Bazar Camps, Flash Report, Political Settlements Research Programme (PSRP), July 2020, available at https://www.politicalsettlements.org/wpcontent/uploads/2020/07/Flash-report-Rohingya-Experiences-Full-Report-14-July-2020.pdf 265 Diana Alberghini, Refugee-led Organizations: The Time Is Now, Refugee Law Initiative, 5 August 2020, available at https://rli.blogs.sas.ac.uk/2020/08/05/refugee-led-organizations-the-time-is-now/ 264 Saiful Haque, 58 Act for Peace / May 2021