Shortly after gaining independence from British colonial rule in 1948, Myanmar was plunged into civil war and many people had to flee to neighbouring Thailand where they were accepted on humanitarian grounds.
Thailand set up refugee camps for them on the border with Myanmar. Now there are nine refugee camps along the border in Thailand: Mae La, Umpiem Mai, Nupo, Mae Ra Ma Luang, Mae La Oon, Tham Hin, Ban Don Yang, and Karenni Refugee Camps 1 and 2. The largest of those camps, Mae La, across from Karen State, was established 41 years ago in 1984.
Approximately 10,000 people live in those camps, according to official figures.
The Border Consortium (TBC) is primarily responsible for providing them with food and shelter, whereas the International Rescue Committee (IRC) is mainly responsible for managing healthcare in the camps, including running hospitals in the camps.
On his first day in office, 20 January 2025, Donald Trump ordered a complete suspension of all aid from the US to review the country's international aid programs. This brought healthcare services in the refugee camps on the Thai border to an immediate halt.
On 10 March US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that 83 per cent of all US aid programmes had been permanently cancelled. The Trump administration gave almost no details on which aid and development efforts abroad it spared, but it seems likely that all US aid to the refugee camps on the Thai border will be cut.
On 27 February 2025, TBC, the primary provider of food aid to the camps, announced that due to financial shortfalls it was uncertain as to whether it would be able to continue supplying food to the camps beyond April, as it only has funds secured until the end of March.
This news has sparked significant concern among many refugee families in the camps, who have no other sources of income and rely entirely on TBC for their food.
Aid Distribution
When considering how much food assistance to allocate to people in the camps, camp officials and aid organisations generally divide refugee families into four groups. Below is a description of each group and how much aid they were receiving before the cuts to US Aid. What refugees will receive following the cuts when the current funding runs out is unknown.
The first group consists of well-off families, including those who run shops and businesses in the refugee camps. They are not provided with food assistance.
The second group, refugee families with a combined monthly income exceeding 5,000 THB, also receive no food aid. If any member of a refugee family earns more than 5,000 Thai Baht (THB) a month none of their family members will receive food aid.
The third group consists of families with a combined income of between 1,000 THB and 5,000 THB a month. These include the families of staff working in the camps in sectors such as health, education, and sanitation. Each family member over the age of five years who has no income is allocated 322 THB a month. Families in this group have a monthly income of, on average, 2,000 THB a month.
The fourth group includes the poorest and most vulnerable families in the camps, such as families with no income, female-headed households experiencing financial hardships, widows, individuals with chronic illnesses, and the elderly. People in this group who are over the age of five years and from families with no source of income receive a monthly allowance of 388 THB per person.
Children under the age of five years in either the third or fourth group receive 237 THB a month each.
Explaining how aid has been distribute till now, Saw Pwe Say, the secretary of the Karen Refugees Committee (KRC) said: “Among the camp residents, some run shops and own motorbikes. They're considered self-reliant. We also allow them to change their status if they encounter financial difficulties. Then there are many families in the camps who are truly struggling to make a living. In some cases, we don't support the entire family, but instead, we provide assistance to specific family members.”
Daw Mu Myint’s family of four lives in Umpiem Mai camp and is classified as being in the fourth group of refugees, the most deprived group. Each member of the family receives 388 THB, meaning that the entire family has to survive on 1,522 THB (about 46 USD) a month, which unsurprisingly, according to Daw Mu Myint, is insufficient for a family to survive on for a whole month.
She said: “388 THB per person isn’t enough for a month. But we manage as best as we can, using makeshift solutions. There are times when we have had to borrow money in advance and pay it back once the aid came through. Other times, friends from abroad have sent us some money to help.”
The meagre aid funds, even before any US aid cuts, are insufficient for the family's livelihood, so Daw Mu Myint’s husband, who lost a leg to a landmine, frequently ventures into the forest to gather wild vegetables that Daw Mu Myint sells at a market to earn extra income.
Food Distribution
Previously, food was transported to refugee camps in cargo trucks and distributed at designated gathering points.
But, in 2016 TBC piloted a card-based system of food distribution in Tham Hin and Nupo camps before introducing it in 2019 to all the nine camps in Thailand on the Myanmar border.
Explaining the change a refugee who has been in Nupo camp since 1997 said: “In the past, we had to gather at food distribution points at the end of each month to get aid. The food usually included rice, oil, salt, beans, wheat, and sometimes charcoal. For example, if the monthly aid was 1 kilogram of rice per person, a family of five registered members would get 5 kilograms of rice. Now, with the card system, we can just go to the food distribution shops and buy food with our cards.”
Families who are entitled to assistance receive food aid cards and TBC then transfers their monthly aid allowance on to the cards which can be used in shops in the refugee camps to purchase from a selection of around 40 designated food items.
The shops in the refugee camps are required to sell the food that can be purchased with the cards at a fixed price. They are forbidden from raising prices and prices for all items must be clearly displayed.
Ma Nang, who runs a convenience store in a refugee camp explained: “Customers can use their cards by simply scanning them with a device provided by TBC, and they'll receive a receipt voucher. We don't have the right to set the prices of the goods ourselves. This rule makes it more convenient for customers. We also make sure to display the prices clearly on the blackboard.”
There are 112 shops in the nine refugee camps that accept TBC issued card payments and all of them are run by women, according to TBC.
To ensure that the prices are fair for both the shops and refugees buying food the prices are set by a Food Card System Group in each refugee camp which is also responsible for monitoring the shops. There are about 245 refugee representatives appointed to the Card System groups in the nine refugee camps.
Uncertain Funding
Due to the suspension of aid from the US, TBC announced on 27 February 2025 that it was running out of funding and may only be able to support refugees at the levels mentioned until the end of March 2025.
Many refugee families, already struggling with insufficient aid, will face significant challenges to survive when the aid cuts take effect.
In an attempt to mitigate those challenges TBC has been in discussions with the Thai authorities and together they have been trying to explore other ways the refugees might be able to become self-reliant. One example are the current negotiations taking place between them that would allow refugees to work in Thai agriculture and manufacturing outside the camps.
According to KRC, following the cuts in US aid the fourth group of refugees, the poorest and most vulnerable, will be exempt from planned food aid cuts in April. The third group who currently receive 322 THB per month each, may see their aid reduced by 50 to 100 THB each. More details about the cuts and where they will hit will be known by the end of April.
KRC secretary Saw Pwe Say said to KIC: “The exact amount of food aid to be cut hasn't been confirmed yet, but we hope to have clarity by the end of April. In the meantime, we’ll continue monitoring the situation. If things improve, we’ll proceed with the normal food distribution procedures. If things worsen, we will provide more details by the end of April as we said. For now, there is enough food for the month of April.”
Naw Yaw Lar, a refugee from Umpiem Mai camp who is in the third group of refugees receiving aid said: “Some TBC officials told us that food aid will continue as usual until March, but it might decrease starting in April. They couldn’t say for sure. If the aid is cut, we’ll have no choice but to accept the situation. If it happens while prices are rising, we’ll have to manage, since we still need to buy food to survive.”
According to TBC, there are about 10,800 people living in refugee camps in Thailand on the border with Myanmar and it costs an average of 1.3 million USD a month to support them.
TBC has warned that the cuts in aid could lead to severe consequences for the refugees and is calling for donations on its website and social media pages.
