Beyond Camps and Communities : The Economics of Refugee Relocation in Bangladesh

Relocating refugees to remote purpose-built settlements offers an alternative to hosting refugees in traditional camps or local communities. Yet, its consequences remain poorly understood. This paper evaluates the well-being and fiscal implications of relocating Rohingya refugees from the overcrowded camps of Cox’s Bazar to Bhasan Char, a newly developed remote island settlement in Bangladesh. Using data from the 2019 and 2023 waves of the Cox’s Bazar Panel Survey and the Bhasan Char Panel Survey 2022 and considering the absence of systematic selection criteria in the relocation process, the paper compares well-being outcomes between relocated and non-relocated households using both unadjusted means and propensity score matching. The paper documents two main findings. First, relocation is associated with a systematic reduction in refugee well-being, including lower food consumption (in both variety and nutritional value), higher illness and depression rates, and lower wages. Second, these outcomes occur despite significantly higher costs: per capita service delivery in Bhasan Char is approximately three times more expensive than in Cox’s Bazar. These results raise important questions about the sustainability and effectiveness of purpose-built relocation models in displacement settings.