Heritage in Exile: The Rohingya Cultural Memory Centre’s (RCMC) Journey Around the World

What began as a community initiative inside the Rohingya refugee camps of Cox’s Bazar is now reaching audiences around the world. Through its World Tour, the Rohingya Cultural Memory Centre (RCMC) is carrying stories of heritage, identity and resilience to global cultural and policy spaces.

Established in Cox’s Bazar in 2022, the RCMC is a community-led initiative that works with Rohingya community members to preserve traditions, document stories, and promote creative expression through art, craft, music and storytelling.

For many in the Rohingya community, cultural expression has become a way to hold onto memories of home, maintain a sense of identity and belonging, and support their mental health and psychosocial wellbeing.

In March 2026, the RCMC’s journey reached a notable milestone when it graced the halls of the European Parliament – one of Europe’s most influential decision-making spaces.

From 2-6 March, policymakers, diplomats and visitors walked through the “Rohingya Heritage in Exile: Arar Rosom, Arar Elom” exhibition, catching a deeper glimpse into a community whose cultural identity endures despite years of displacement. Inside the halls of the European Parliament, Rohingya heritage became part of a broader conversation about resilience, dignity, and the human dimension of displacement.

The RCMC World Tour began in 2023 with an exhibition at the Dhaka Art Summit, where embroidered tapestries and cultural artefacts showcased Rohingya folklore, memories of home, and everyday life in the camps. The showcase drew attention from artists, researchers and cultural practitioners, marking the start of a growing international journey.

Later that year, Rohingya cultural heritage reached policymakers in the United Kingdom through exhibitions at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and the House of Commons. These events created space for dialogue between cultural storytelling and policy discussions on displacement.

The World Tour continued to expand in 2024, bringing Rohingya artistic expression to regional cultural venues such as the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre, where visitors engaged with Rohingya narratives through art and interactive displays.

At the European Humanitarian Forum in Brussels in May 2025, Rohingya cultural displays accompanied critical debates on humanitarian action. Meanwhile, in Tokyo in June 2025, the exhibition reached new audiences during the Sophia University United Nations Week, highlighting the connection between cultural identity and community well-being.

The journey further continued in the Netherlands in October 2025 through the “Echoes of Myanmar in The Hague” exhibition.

Over time, the World Tour evolved into more than an exhibition. It became a platform for cultural advocacy – demonstrating how heritage can help shape conversations around humanitarian response and lasting solutions to displacement.

Across these global platforms, the RCMC delivered a consistent message: cultural understanding fosters empathy, bridges perspectives, and connects communities across borders.

In total, since 2023, the RCMC World Tour has participated in 17 national and international exhibitions, bringing the story of the Rohingya to audiences across Asia and Europe. The latest exhibition at the European Parliament marked another step forward in that journey.

Each stop along the RCMC’s journey so far has created new opportunities for much-needed discourse, shaping global conversations about the need to empower the Rohingya with the dignity and resilience they deserve.

The Rohingya Cultural Memory Centre (RCMC) is managed by IOM’s Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) team in Cox’s Bazar. Since its establishment, the RCMC has been made possible with the support of the Asian Development Bank, Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Government of Bangladesh, Global Affairs Canada (GAC), European Union Humanitarian Aid, the Government of Japan, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Qatar Charity, the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), the Government of Sweden, the United Kingdom Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), the United States Government, USA for IOM, and the World Bank.

Written by Tarek Mahmud, Senior Media and Communication Associate, IOM Bangladesh