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aid,” Save the Children official Golam Mostofa said in a statement.

“Many families feel that they have no choice but to risk their lives and leave by boat -- but their journeys are fraught with danger.”

Last year was the deadliest on record for Rohingya refugees fleeing by sea, with deaths continuing to soar in 2026, according to UNHCR, the United Nations refugee agency.

Nearly 900 Rohingya refugees were reported missing or dead in the Andaman Sea and Bay of Bengal in 2025.

More than 250 Rohingya refugees and Bangladeshi migrants were reported missing this month after their boat capsized in the Andaman Sea, a route many travel when heading towards Indonesia.

Data from the UNHCR shows that 2,907 people left by sea from Myanmar and Bangladesh up to March 31 this year, compared to 1,517 people over the same period in 2025.

The cash-strapped UN World Food Programme cut aid for large portions of the 1.2 million-strong Rohingya group in Bangladesh this month.

Save the Children said the ration cuts had affected at least 500,000 Rohingya refugee children.

That was “putting further strain on families, with reduced food security inside the camps driving more refugees to attempt dangerous sea journeys”, the agency said.