NEW DELHI — Authorities in Bangladesh began a survey to determine the number of Rohingya Muslims who have fled persecution in majority-Buddhist Myanmar.
Around 33,000 Rohingya have been documented in two official camps in the southern coastal district of Cox’s Bazar that borders Myanmar, but officials say another 300,000 to 500,000 remain unaccounted.
Bangladesh’s Bureau of Statistics began the exercise this week with the help of the Geneva-based International Organization of Migration, said survey director Alamgir Hossain.
He said the survey across six districts will end on Wednesday and will be followed by a census of the Rohingya next month.
The census will also focus on the living conditions and socio-economic status of the Rohingya and the information gathered will be used to create a community database.
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