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Cooking Gas Lightens the Load for Refugees
Cox's Bazar – When liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) replaced firewood as the cooking fuel of choice in the Rohingya refugee camps in 2018, the impact was almost immediate.
Refugees no longer needed to venture into forests to forage for firewood, a chore that had exposed mostly women and girls, to possible elephant attacks and protection risks.
The shift away from reliance on firewood resulted in the regeneration of local vegetation, which had quickly been depleted due to extensive deforestation soon after August 2017 when the Rohingya fled Myanmar en masse. This has been complemented by extensive re-afforestation necessitated by the need to stabilize slopes to control landslides which are a regular occurrence due to the heavy rains during the monsoon season.
The introduction of LPG has led to several positive outcomes in Cox’s Bazar, but the regeneration of forests has had the most impact for both refugees and host community members.
Environmental sustainability is particularly important in Bangladesh, which is among the countries worst affected by climate change due to its location and topography that is highly susceptible to weather-related hazards.
This is already apparent in Cox’s Bazar where the effects of rising sea levels include saltwater intrusion and much stronger thunderstorms and the risks of cyclones. Avoidable practices like the wanton cutting down of trees only served to worsen the destruction of the environment.
Back in the camps, the use of LPG eliminated smoke inhalation, a potential health hazard. As cooking became easier and predictable, nutrition improved. This contrasts with the previous situation when refugees reported skipping meals and even eating undercooked meals due to a shortage of cooking fuel.
“Earlier in the camps, I used a clay stove and firewood, and it was very tiresome to cook repeatedly several times in a day. After getting LPG, it became easy to cook anything quickly,” said Kulsuma.
The mother of two is among nearly one million refugees living in the world’s largest refugee camp in Cox’s Bazar. The refugees depend on humanitarian assistance for almost all their needs, including LPG. Its convenience is even more apparent during the month of Ramadan when food preparation assumes greater significance.
“Before, we had to wake up around midnight to make food for sehri (the early morning meal before fasting), and that was difficult for us,” said Kulsuma. “But LPG helps me to sleep well and wake up to make the food within a short time.”
IOM distributes LPG to over 460,000 individuals directly every month. The gas is also a significant portion of IOM’s 2022 funding appeal for USD 128 million to provide support among the 1.4 million refugees and local communities in Cox’s Bazar. In the month of Ramadan alone, over 78,000 cylinder re-fills are needed.
“It is extraordinary that LPG can have such an impact on the daily lives of the Rohingya,” said Nihan Erdogan, Deputy Chief of Mission at IOM Bangladesh. “However, continuous resources are needed to keep up with demand and not to lose the significant environmental, nutritional and health gains made.”
The gas distributions are managed through a cooperation where an e-voucher system enables beneficiaries to purchase stove sets and recharge gas cylinders at participating LPG outlets in the camps. The refills depend on household size. For extremely vulnerable individuals, IOM provides porter support to transport the canisters from distribution points to their doorsteps.
IOM also trains refugees to use LPG cylinders and stoves safely and introduced “fire safety rings,” which are large portable metal discs that work as a barrier between the gas stove and the nearest wall. This minimizes the risk of fire within the confined space of a refugee shelter made from flammable materials such as tarpaulin and woven bamboo.
In addition, IOM proposed a significant change for new shelters—that the wall nearest to the cooking area should be plastered with cement to protect it from fire. These innovations make the LPG system safer to use.
