Projects Ahora o Nunca: Mongolia
3. DIAGNOSIS AND LEGAL FRAMEWORK
Why Mongolia? As noted, Mongolia seems to have sunk into oblivion following that glorious past and hardly receives any attention from the international community. This may be attributable to the absence of violent conflicts or natural disasters, to the high percentage of nomadic population, to the lack of important natural resources, and to the impression that “nothing ever happens there”… Unfortunately, this widespread ignorance and lack of concern for the country’s situation and society is felt by the DNGOs the and humanitarian organisations that deal with the causes of child suffering there. International financing is generally filtered through the government and funds do not always reach their intended recipients.
According to a report issued recently by the Mongolian National Statistics Office, Mongolia has a child population of about 700,000, of which approximately 53% is urban, and 47% rural. In spite of the fact that official rates of literacy are surprisingly high (around 90%) according to the same government office, 20% of children between 5 and 17 years old does not receive any formal education. On the other hand, dropping out of school constitutes a serious problem. According to an UNICEF report, up to 70% of registered pupils in rural areas quit their studies. This percentage applies mainly to male children, who find themselves obliged to leave school in order to work, to help their families.
The collapse of the socialist regime in Mongolia meant the loss of subsidies from Moscow, which constituted approximately a third of the national income. At the same time, it led to a significant decrease in social policies, which would have serious repercussions on programmes and supportive infrastructure for children and youth. Another UNICEF report associates the change of political and social structure with widespread family destabilization and the escalation of poverty, alcoholism and sexual abuse. It therefore comes as no surprise that since the end of the nineties Mongolian childhood has been especially affected by such phenomena, which have resulted in abandonment, exclusion and trauma.
