In late January, the Mongolian government issued a ban on holding horse races during the winter months which, in Mongolia, last from October to May.

Horse racing has caused the injury and death of many Mongolian children, who are preferred to adult jockeys because of their smaller size.

Government figures show that in 2017, 10,435 children participated in horse races. Out of which 169 were injured and two were killed.

In winter, risks are heightened: children are subject to frostbite as they ride through cold and wind, visibility is lower, and getting lost or thrown from a horse is more likely to lead to death.

Despite years of protest by child welfare groups, change has been slow. Horse racing is a lucrative business in Mongolia, as members of parliament and other elite members of society own many of the race horses and hire child jockeys from poor families as their riders.

In a country with a rural poverty rate of 35 percent, parents often depend on their children's earnings for their family's survival.

Horse racing and herding are integral to Mongolian culture. Chinggis Khan's horseback warriors are the stuff of Mongol legends and still today, a nomad's wealth is in great part measured by how many horses he keeps.

But those opposed to winter horse racing argue that it is rooted in elite greed, rather than in tradition. Child welfare advocate Bolorsaikhan Badamsambuu explained that winter horse racing has only emerged over the last two decades as a tool for elite income generation and networking.

UNESCO has recognised Nadaam, a July holiday celebrating horse racing, archery, and wrestling, as part of Mongolia's intangible cultural heritage.

However, as Badamsambuu argues, children racing in winter is not part of this tradition. "The current Mongolian horse-racing obsession is promoting all-seasons horse racing and is destroying the lives of children."

The legal battle to outlaw winter and children's horse racing has been led by Baasanjargal Khurelbaatar, an Ulaanbaatar-based lawyer who took on the case pro-bono.

She worked with 27 civil society organisations to present the case in the country's Supreme Court. While her group has been successful in changing legislation, enforcement may be difficult.

"The lawyers did what we were supposed to do. Now government organisations must work even harder to protect children," Khurelbaatar told Al Jazeera.

Wishing him a pleasant stay in Mongolia, PM U.Khurelsukh said "Mongolia and the Republic of Korea established diplomatic relations on this day of 1990 or 29 years ago. I made my first visit from ROK as the Prime Minister of Mongolia. During the visit, I personally got acquainted with flourishment of South Korea which has been developing under your leadership. I am confident that Your visit will make significant contribution to progress comprehensive partnership of the two countries.

In turn, South Korean PM Lee Nak-yeon said “I am starting my visit of this year from Mongolia. I congratulate you for that Mongolia’s economy has been growing and making people’s life better. Diplomatic relations between the two countries have made rapid strides in the past. 200 thousand citizens of two countries mutually traveled last year and it is a clear indication of it. South Korea is Mongolia’s fourth largest trading partner and it is listed in the 6th place with its amount of investment. There are broad opportunities to cooperate in areas of environment and health besides industrial sector in the future.”

He made the statement during a meeting with water experts of the country, according to the government's press office.

"I have fully supported a proposal by water experts on establishing an agency which is in charge of the issues of the country's water," Khurelsukh said, adding that he has ordered relevant ministers to conduct research.

Mongolians' water consumption now lies at between 7 and 160 liters per day depending on where they live, which means that, compared with other countries, Mongolia ranks in the middle of the list of countries in the world by per capita water consumption, adequacy and hygiene of drinking water, N. Enkhbayar, an advisor to Khurelsukh, said on Thursday.

The Asian country boasts some 11,902 cubic meters of renewable internal freshwater resources per capita, according to data released by the World Bank in 2014.

Though the amount of water resources per capita in Mongolia looks abundant, the resources are unevenly distributed, with most rivers and lakes located in the northern mountainous regions of the landlocked country, while in other parts of the country, especially southern desert areas, underground sources account for 80 percent of total water consumption.

Around 30 percent of Mongolia's population has access to the water supply system. About 25 percent of the population receives water from the water transportation service, over 35 percent gets water from water supply points and less than 10 percent uses water from springs, rivers and snow water. Enditem