Breastfeeding rates in Mongolia have been declining, according to survey results released by the country's health ministry on Tuesday.

The Ministry of Health and the National Center for Public Health, with support from UNICEF, conducted the VI National Survey on the Nutritional Status of the Population in 2023-2024 to assess and improve the nation's nutritional status.

The survey included more than 16,000 people from all 21 provinces of Mongolia, including about 2,800 children under the age of 5.

It revealed that the percentage of newborns receiving colostrum immediately after birth has decreased from 96.7 percent in 1999 to 87.4 percent in 2024.

Additionally, the proportion of children exclusively breastfed for up to six months has dropped significantly, from 93.4 percent in 1999 to 59.6 percent in 2024.

The survey also found that seven out of 10 children aged six to 23 months in Mongolia are not eating properly. Half of these children are not consuming the right variety of foods at the right frequency for their age, and 31.8 percent do not eat fruits and vegetables at all.

The NNS V “Nutritional Status of the Population of Mongolia” was conducted six years ago, in 2016-2017, by the Department of Nutrition (currently known as Department of Nutrition and Food Safety) in cooperation with relevant organizations and departments. Based on the results and conclusions of this survey, improvements were made to the legal framework for enhancing the nutritional status of the population, fostering interdisciplinary cooperation, increasing the supply and consumption of healthy and nutritious food, and implementing multifaceted measures to intensify information dissemination, monitoring, and evaluation. These measures were carried out with the financial and technical support of the state and local budgets as well as international donor organizations. For instance, to support and protect breastfeeding, promote healthy eating, and prevent and control nutrition-related disorders, including micronutrient deficiencies specifically among young children and women, several laws were enacted: the “Law on Iodizing Salt and Preventing Iodine Deficiency” in 2013, the “Law on Fortified Food” in 2018, the “Law on Food for Infants and Young Children” in 2017, and the “Law on Food Production and Services of Secondary Schools” in 2019. Programs, procedures, instructions, and recommendations related to these laws have been implemented to achieve their objectives. Therefore, to evaluate the results and effectiveness of policies, programs, procedures, and instructions implemented since 2016 in the field of improving the nutritional status of children and women; to study the effects of poverty and economic crises on the nutritional status of the population; and to analyze the correlation between household socio-economic status and food insecurity, we conducted the VI National Nutrition Survey, “Nutritional Status of the Population of Mongolia”.

See the full version at https://www.unicef.org/.../nutrition-status-population...

Author(s)

Ministry of Health, National Center for Public Health, UNICEF Mongolia

Publication date

February 2025

Languages

English

Mongolia has been ranked 114th out of 180 countries in the 2024 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), Transparency International (TI) Mongolia announced on Tuesday.

Despite maintaining a CPI score of 33 points in both 2023 and 2024, Mongolia moved up seven places in the global ranking compared to the previous year.

The CPI evaluates 180 countries and territories based on perceived levels of public sector corruption, using a scale from 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean).

Published annually by the non-governmental organization TI, the index assesses corruption based on factors such as bribery, misuse of public funds, abuse of public office for personal gain, and nepotism in civil service.

Denmark topped the 2024 index with a score of 90, maintaining its position as the least corrupt country, while South Sudan ranked last with a score of 8, reflecting severe corruption challenges.

Mongolia hired banks for potentially its first dollar bond sale since being upgraded by rating firms last year as it seeks to tap robust global demand for riskier debt early in 2025.

The junk-rated sovereign is planning a deal with a five- and possible 10-year tenor, according to people with knowledge of the matter. If the government proceeds to price the debt, it would be its first in the US-dollar bond market in about 14 months, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Mongolia has become a rare speculative-grade rated sovereign issuer in emerging Asia in recent years as other past borrowers such as Pakistan have had to seek financial assistance from the International Monetary Fund. All the three major international credit rating firms have raised Mongolia’s credit scores since September, with Moody’s Ratings the latest to do so in November.

Moody’s cited an uptick in mineral revenues and a track record of effective debt management when it upgraded Mongolia’s credit assessment one notch to B2, five levels below investment grade.

The nation also plans to repurchase a $566 million bond due in April of next year and a $650 million note maturing in January 2028, according to the people familiar, who asked not to be identified because the information is private. Both bonds are trading above their issue prices.

Average spreads on Asian high-yield dollar bonds are near their tightest in more than six years at 411 basis points, according to a Bloomberg index.

Still, the guage, which has returned 0.5% so far this year, is underperforming global peers as concerns about Chinese property developers flare up again and US President Donald Trump’s tariffs plans unsettle markets. The region’s notes returned 15% last year, in their best annual performance in 12 years, the data show.

Of 20 major Bloomberg fixed-income indexes emerging-market dollar bonds and global high-yield debt are the two best performing so far this year, returning 1.5% and 1.4% respectively, the data show. The bigger spread cushions on the notes give them greater room to absorb volatile moves in Treasuries.

On February10, in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, H.E. Mr. IGAWAHARA Masaru, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to Mongolia, and H.E. Sandag BYAMBATSOGT, Minister of Defence of Mongolia , signed and exchanged notes for 1.3 billion yen in “Official Security Assistance (OSA)” FY 2024 project.

Japan and Mongolia share fundamental values such as freedom, democracy and rule of law, cooperating in security and various other areas under the "Special Strategic Partnership for Peace and Prosperity."

The project will provide the Mongolian Air Force with an air traffic control radar system and related equipment. It is expected to strengthen the situational awareness and air traffic control capabilities of the air force. The project will contribute to ensuring security and safe use of the airspace based on the rule of law in Mongolia and throughout the region.

Japan Air Self-Defense Force and Mongolian Air Force have conducted defense cooperation and exchanges over years. They include capacity building project on air traffic control, which are currently being implemented and expected to have synergistic effects with this OSA project.

(Reference)

OSA is a grant aid cooperation framework which provides equipment and supplies as well as assistance for the development of infrastructures to armed forces and other related organizations of recipient countries. By enhancing their security and deterrence capabilities, OSA aims to strengthen our security cooperation with the recipient countries, to create a desirable security environment for Japan, and to contribute to maintaining and strengthening international peace and security.

“Impactful” is the one word that represents what my trip to Mongolia meant to me.

I’ve seen the stories about poverty. I have heard people share that such “exposure” trips would radically change a person’s life.

Such stories tug on our heartstrings while reading them, but we quickly move on when the reality of deadlines, work and commitments hits us – all these stories and emotions then fade to the back of our minds.

But there is something different when you go to be with them, seeing the real faces behind these stereotypical stories and forming an inexplicable bond with them. The plague of poverty is the reality for these people.

Going on this trip made me realise that it sometimes takes an actual experience for our hearts to be changed. Now that I’ve actually gone out there to step into these communities – people and places that I’ve been so far away from – something has happened in my heart.

From a head that knows, to a heart that cares

As a 19-year-old, I am immersed in a culture of “grinding”. School and work environments can feel like increasingly toxic places that foster perpetual competition and demand never-ending commitments.

But in all the schools I visited in Mongolia, the one thing that stood out to me was their ability to make the most out of whatever they have been given.

The children there do so many activities for the sake of passion, pleasure and enjoyment. I never got the sense that they were taking part in these activities to climb the social ladder. They just seemed so much lighter and happier.

These values are especially seen in their “informal schools” – schools specially designated for co-curricular and extracurricular activities.

These schools don’t just educate children, they also welcome adults who may be mentally disabled or who did not have access to education at a young age.

Through my visits, I learnt that these schools really try to understand the unique difficulties each student faces so as to adapt their activities accordingly.

I believe such an education system brings hope to those who are conventionally deemed as “slow learners”, and also unleashes each person’s potential so that everyone can contribute to society.

This was most clear when the children shared their aspirations for the future with me.

One girl told me that she wanted to be a dentist because she noticed that the other children’s teeth weren’t so good.

Another girl (who I sponsor, as well as her sibling) told me she wants to become a doctor because her father was bedridden for an entire year.

These children have a different drive behind their aspirations beyond just self-fulfilment. It’s not just grades or individual gains – they carry a desire to serve and help others.

Building community banks

World Vision has also started a project called Savings Groups that aims to provide education on financial responsibility.

This is because many vulnerable families in Mongolia have unstable sources of income, and they don’t know when or how to save.

For instance, some families that sell crops for a living depend on the weather for their income.

If they managed to have a good harvest, they would immediately spend all the money earned on big-ticket items like a new TV.

But if their harvest isn’t good in the following year, they would have no savings for their daily necessities.

Therefore, World Vision hopes to help such close-knit communities cultivate financial responsibility and accountability through Savings Groups.

Each Savings Group consists of around 10 to 15 members, and it functions like a community bank.

Each member can decide how much money they want to save, and they put it in a safe box for safekeeping. One person safe-keeps the box, while several keys are handed to different people. They will need all the keys to open the box.

Taking out loans would require an interest, and that generates some money for other members of the group.

At these Savings Groups, the members also rotate meetings among their homes so they get to meet each other’s families and see their living conditions. This helps them when they need to decide whether a member should be allowed to take out a loan.

This system also builds the personal relationships that members have with each other. It is one thing to put money in a bank or save some money at home on your own, but when dreams and plans are shared – a culture of accountability and encouragement are created.

To whom much was given, of him much will be required

Living in a part of the world that is more developed, we are financially better off than many. We can certainly look out for brothers and sisters like the ones I met in Mongolia.

I really hope to encourage us not to underestimate the power of sponsorship. In some ways, $45 a month might not seem like a lot of money. But during my time in Mongolia, I truly saw the impact that World Vision is making and how grateful the local communities are.

We were told many stories of how sponsored children became vice presidents of agriculture, workers at World Vision and people who took up other jobs that give back to the community.

This is one of World Vision’s missions – to empower the sponsored to become sponsors. So when we sponsor a child, the impact it brings is actually exponential. And that brings me so much hope.

I returned from the trip with a new commitment. From a girl with no responsibilities, I have now pledged to sponsor two children for the next decade. It feels like I now have a little family of my own!

If you are keen to find out more about World Vision, start here!

By Maria Chow

This story was contributed by a volunteer. Have a testimony that could encourage others? We’d love to hear from you at hello@thir.st!