Care & Community - MONGOLIA Country Facts

Mongolia

Full name: Republic of Mongolia Population: 2.7 million (UN, 2005) Capital: Ulan Bator Area: 1.56 million sq km (603,909 sq miles) Major language: Mongolian Major religion: Buddhism Life expectancy: 62 years (men), 66 years (women) (UN) Monetary unit: 1 Togrog (tugrik) = 100 mongos Main exports: Copper concentrate, dehaired cashmere, textiles, hides GNI per capita: US $690 (World Bank, 2006) Internet domain: .mn International dialling code: +976

Geography

Mongolia is in Northern Asia landlocked between Russia to the North and China to the South. Its land is divided into areas of semidesert and desert plains, grassy steppe, mountains, and the Gobi Desert which constitutes 30% of the territory. Practically none of the land is arable and there are no permanent crops. Summers are warm and rainy while winters are extremely cold and snowy. Natural resources found include oil, coal, copper, gold, silver and iron. Mongolia suffers from dust storms, grassland and forest fires, drought, and "zud," which is harsh winter conditions.

Wildlife

Mongolia's vast expanses of remote forests support wolf, wild boar, elk, deer, antelope and brown bear. The margins of the steppes and forests are home to marmot, muskrat, fox, gazelle, steppe fox and sable. Remote mountain regions support wild cats such as lynx, and the elusive snow leopard. Mongolia is also home to wild ass, wild camel, and wild sheep. The Gobi Bear, an indigenous species who lives on berries, grass roots, leaves and bamboo, inhabits the Gobi Desert and its surrounding mountains.

Mongolia's bird life is also rich and includes the Golden Eagle, Bearded Vulture, and other birds of prey, while the 2,000 lakes are magnets for water birds including Storks and even Herring Gull and Relict Gull. The lakes also support many species of fish unique to Mongolia.

Millions of years ago, Mongolia was home to numerous dinosaur species. Today a wealth of fossils can be found almost perfectly preserved, in the arid climate and sandy soils of the Gobi Desert.

Since the early 1990s Takhi horses have been reintroduced to the wild, they are a very rare species and had been extinct in the wild for over 30 years. Today, over 100 Takhi horses are living in two protected areas of Mongolia.

People

Mongolia is virtually homogenous; 94.9% of the population are Mongol and the remainder are Turkic, Chinese or Russian. Half the population follow the Buddhist Lamaist religion, 40% do not follow a religion and the remaining 10% are Shamanist, Christian or Muslim. The official language, Khalkha Mongol is spoken by 90% of Mongolians; other languages spoken include Turkic and Russian. The literacy rate is high at 97.8%.

Nomads

Undoubtedly one of the main interests in travelling in Mongolia is the exciting discovery of the Mongolian nomadic lifestyle. On the edge of the 21st century, Mongolia remains one of the few countries to retain its ancient traditions and culture.

The vast expanses of the steppes, the absolute magnitude, beauty and wonder of the Mongolian scenery are intertwined with the Mongolian nomadic lifestyle and renowned hospitality which has changed little through the passing of the time.

The Mongolian culture is shaped by the nomads and the ger - the traditional dwelling of the nomadic Mongolian is the focal point of many customs and traditions. Combined with the Mongol myth of Genghis Khan, the nomadic lifestyle is a magnet for many travellers to the country. Mongolia attracts and fascinates both travellers interested in exploring the nomadic lifestyle and intrepid adventurers searching for particular experiences in a unique setting like horse riding, fishing or trekking.

Brief History

Mongolian history goes back more than 2000 years at which time nomadic tribes inhabited the land and repeatedly invaded China. To protect themselves from these marauding people, the Chinese built the Great Wall in around 200 B.C. The birth of Ghengis Khan in the 12th century was a key event in Mongolia's history. He was born into a tribe called the Mongol tribe of which he eventually became leader. Using his position of power he united all the nomadic tribes under the name of his own tribe, Mongols. With this strength of numbers behind him, Genghis Khan began a conquest that continued for years under the command of his sons and grandsons. The Mongols reached their most powerful during the 13th century under Kublai Khan, at which time their empire stretched from India and the Himalayas in Asia to the Black Sea in Europe making it the world's biggest land empire. The Mongol empire imploded in the mid 14th century and they were ousted from present-day Bejing by Ming troops who also destroyed the Mongol capital, Karakorum. The 17th century saw the beginning of Chinese Manchu rule under which Inner and Outer Mongolia were created. The Manchu empire fell in 1911. In 1921 the Mongolian 'people's government '- which was later renamed the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party (MPRP) - was installed. In 1924 the Mongolian People's Republic was proclaimed by communists. In 1945 China agreed to give up Outer Mongolia which became nominally independence under the name Mongolia. Inner Mongolia has remained under Chinese rule. Soviet Red Army occupation continued until the mid 1980's. By the time political parties were legalized in 1990 the previously-communist MPRP had been ruling the country for about seventy years and their rule continued when they won the first elections in 1990; they have retained power since except for a brief period in 1996-7 when the Democratic Alliance won the elections.

Politics

The current president is Nambaryn Enkhbayar of the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party who won the elections of May 2005. This party, the MPRP was formerly a communist party and ruled over Mongolia for most of the 20th century with backing from Moscow in Soviet times. Enkhbayar pledges to fight poverty and unemployment. He is head of the armed forces and has the power to veto in parliament, but real political power is exercised by the prime minister and parliament. The current prime minister is Miyeegombo Enkhbold, also of the MPRP. His government aims to improve economic growth and stamp out official corruption.

Economy

Mongolia's economy is unstable. It relies on China as its main export partner and as a main source of the 'grey' economy, and its dependency on Russia for imports of oil and electricity make it vulnerable to price increases. Its main export commodities are copper, apparel, livestock, animal products, cashmere, wool, hides, and fluorspar. Its main imports are machinery and equipment, fuel, cars, food products, industrial consumer goods, chemicals, building materials, sugar, and tea. The extreme climate is damaging to Mongolia's herding and agricultural sector. In the past, droughts and freezing winters have caused the deaths of huge numbers of livestock destroying the livelihoods of half of Mongolia's population. Although Mongolia has been given generous donations from the IMF and donor countries, the economy has not seen much growth because of corruption. The unemployment rate is 6.7% and about 36% live below the poverty line.

Kharakhorum

Mongolia's ancient capital, Kharakhorum, Genghis Khan's fabled city, was founded in 1220 in the Orkhon valley, at the crossroads of the Silk Road. It was from there that the Mongol Empire governed, until Khubilai Khaan moved it to Beijing. The symbolic ruins of Kharakhorum (Harhorin), monumental walls (400m in length) with 108 stupas, surround the first Buddhist monastery in Mongolia Erdene Zuu Monastery, built in 1586. In 1792, it housed 62 temples and 10,000 lamas; since 1990, it has become an active monastery again. Turtles carved from the stone marked the boundaries of the complex. Nearby are Turkish monuments and rock inscriptions erected in the 8-9th centuries in memory of the outstanding fighters for independence.
The ruins of the ancient town Kara Korum are also well worth a visit. During the 13th and 14th centuries the capital of Mongolia was situated here. At the time it was a busy, splendid city with high culture. Nearby you can also see the former Buddhist monastery at Erdene Zuu erected in the 16th century. Quite a surprise for the scientists was the discovery of a burial site of a Mongolian woman which dates to approximately the 14th century where two Egyptian masks, a wooden comb and a bronze mirror in a silk case were found. The ruins of this ancient capital and the Erdene Zuu monastery with its 108 stupas are undoubtedly of great interest to travellers.

The Gobi Desert

The Gobi Desert is a vast zone of desert and desert steppe covering almost 30% of the Mongolian territory. The area is often imagined as a lifeless desert as found in many other parts of the world. In reality, most of the Gobi Desert is a land of steppes, home to camel breeders and rich with wildlife and vegetation. Wild asses, camels, snow leopards, mountain sheep and gazelles flourish here, as do many different types of flora. Dinosaur skeletons and their petrified eggs have been preserved here to the present day. Mongolians believe that there are 33 areas of the Gobi, with sandy desert occupying only 3% of the total territory.

The climate is extreme, hitting 40 degrees Celcius in summer and severely cold winters. The Great Gobi Reservation established in 1975 was designated by the United Nations as the fourth largest Biosphere Reserve in the world in 1991. The desert is located 600km from Ulaanbaatar, in the foothills of the Altai mountains at an altitude of 1521 metres above sea level. It takes about an hour and a half by plane to fly.

Yoliin Am

The valley in the Zuun Saikhan mountain range located 45km from Dalanzadgad, in the centre of South Gobi Aimag, is called Yoliin Am. The narrow valley between high rock walls has breathtaking dramatic scenery, and is no doubt one of the most beautiful places in the country. In the rainy summers hundreds of small waterfalls appear in the rocky walls. Camel trekking and horse riding tours are available in the valley.

Khovsgol lake

Known as "The Dark Blue Pearl", Lake Khovsgol is Mongolia's largest and deepest lake. Located in the northernmost province, it is the largest tributary stream of Lake Baikal in Russia. Lake Khovsgol is 136km long, 36km wide, 262m deep and is located at an altitude of 1645m above sea level. It is frozen from January until April or May. It is the second largest fresh water lake in Central Asia. It's inhabited by nine species of fish including the Siberian grayling and lenok. Fishing and sport fishing are becoming popular in the lake area. A ferryboat operates between Khatgal and Khanh, two towns on the southern and northern shores of the lake that is within the boundaries of the Khovsgol National Park. Different ethnic groups live in the area: Khalh, Darhadt, Butyat and Tsaatans, who are reindeer herders. Lake Khovsgol is on the important migration route for birds from Siberia, thus facilitating marvelous opportunities for bird watching.

Terelj National Park

Gotkhi- Terelj, about 80km north-east of Ulaanbaatar, is a deservedly popular destination. At 1600m, the area is cool, the alpine scenery is magnificent, and there are great opportunities for hiking, rock climbing, swimming (in icy water), rafting, horse riding and, for hard-core extreme sports fanatics, skiing in the depths of winter. Most visited are the turtle rock and the dinosaur park.

Terelj was first developed for tourism in 1964 and 30 years later it became part of the Gorkhi-Terelj National Park. To the north-east, the park joins the Khan Khentii Strictly Protected Area, comprising over 1.2 million hectares of the Tov, Selenge and Khentii Aimags. The Khan Khentii park is almost completely uninhabited by humans, but it is home to endangered species of moose, brown bear and weasel, to name but a few, and to over 250 species of birds. Parts of the tiny section of the Gorkhi-Terelj National Park developed for tourism have been over developed: some ger camps have concrete car parks, ugly electricity poles, TV antennae and discos at night; and locals overcharge for goods and services. But you can easily get away from all this if you want.

In later summer, the mosquitoes at Terelj can be appalling - at times, the worst in the country - so make sure you have insect repellent with you.