Broad approach to health in Mongolia

Nomadic herders in Mongolia want to improve their children’s future. With a three-year plan, we are investing in a broad approach to health through the areas of healthcare, education, agriculture and food, and sport. Extra attention is being paid to oral health. Many children in these remote communities have never seen a dentist. 

On the steppes of the Ulaankhus sum region in north-western Mongolia, herding families live of their livestock. Climate change is making good grazing land increasingly scarce. This is causing food shortages and conflicts between communities. In addition to their future as herders, these traditional nomads have other concerns. Within Mongolian society, they form a socio-economically disadvantaged group with their own language and traditions. The government invests mainly in other regions.   

To improve the future prospects of herding families, the local organisation Source of Steppe Nomads NGO, together with the Dutch Foundation Friends of Steppe Nomads Mongolia, has developed a multi-year comprehensive approach to health that is supported by the Wilde Ganzen Foundation. Active Health Foundation supports the implementation with a financial donation. 

Dental care for children 

There are no dentists on the steppe, and oral hygiene is a major problem. Special focus is therefore placed on dental care and prevention for children. For their health and well-being, it is important that their teeth are checked and that they are taught how to brush their teeth, among other things. Mobile dental health camps at schools help children become aware of the importance of preventive oral health and give them access to the necessary dental care. 

Healthcare, education, agriculture and food, sport 

In order to promote the long-term health and resilience of the community, this project also supports other activities: 

• Healthcare: in the remote Dayan region, vitamins and basic medicines are distributed to families who are isolated during the winter.  

• Education: preschools receive materials to better support young children in their transition to regular education. Textbooks for the Mongolian education system are also purchased, particularly for children learning Mongolian as a second language. Teachers receive training in creative teaching methods for large, mixed classes. After-school education is organised for children with learning difficulties.   

• Agriculture and food: to enable families to eat more vegetables, they are given seeds, tools, materials and advice on how to start a vegetable garden. Erosion is combated by planting 500 trees. And twenty nomadic families living below the poverty line receive support to obtain grass and feed for their animals.   

• Sport: dance and gymnastics are being integrated into education and a fitness room is being added to the local organisation’s training centre.  

More than 1,250 people are benefiting directly from this project.