MONGOLIA

Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia. Mongolia is located between Russia to the north and China to the south. Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, although only 37 kilometres (23 mi) separates them.

At 1,564,116 squarekilometres (603,909 sq mi), Mongolia is the 18th largest and the most sparsely populated unitary sovereign state in the world, with a population of around 3 million people.

It is also the world’s second largest landlocked country behind Kazakhstan and the largest landlocked country that does not border a closed sea. The country contains very little arable land, as much of its area is covered by grassy steppe, with mountains to the north and west and the Gobi Desert to the south.

 Ulaanbaatar, the capital and largest city, is home to about 45% of the country’s population.

Geography and climate

 At 1,564,116 km2 (603,909 sq mi), Mongolia is the world’s 18thlargest country (after Iran). It mostly lies between latitudes 41° and 52°N (a small area is north of 52°), and longitudes 87° and 120°E. As a point of reference the northernmost part of Mongolia is on roughly the same latitude as Berlin (Germany) and Amsterdam (Netherlands), while the southernmost part is on roughly the same latitude as Rome (Italy) and Chicago (USA). The westernmost part of Mongolia is on roughly the same longitude as Kolkata (India), while the easternmost part is on the same longitude as Qinhuangdao (China) and Hangzhou (China), as well as the western edge of Taiwan.

The geography of Mongolia is varied, with the Gobi Desert to the south and cold, mountainous regions to the north and west. Much of Mongolia consists of the Mongolian-Manchurian grassland steppe, with forested areas comprising 11.2% of the total land area, a higher percentage than the Republic of Ireland (10%).

Mongolia is known as the “Land of the Eternal Blue Sky” or “Country of Blue Sky” because it has over 250 sunny days a year.

Most of the country is hot in the summer and extremely cold in the winter, with January averages dropping as low as −30 °C (−22 °F). A vast front of cold, heavy, shallow air comes in from Siberia in winter and collects in river valleys and low basins causing very cold temperatures while slopes of mountains are much warmer due to the effects of temperature inversion (temperature increases with altitude).

Demographics

Mongolia’s total population as of January 2018 was estimated by the Mongolian National Statistical Office to be 3,177,899 people, ranking around 121st in the world. 50.8% of the total population is woman.

The first census in the 20th century was carried out in 1918 and recorded a population of 647,500. Since the end of socialism, Mongolia has experienced a decline of total fertility rate (children per woman) that is steeper than in any other country in the world, according to recent UN estimations: in 1970–1975, fertility was estimated to be 7.33 children per woman, dropping to about 2.1 in 2000–2005. The decline ended and in 2005–2010, the estimated fertility value increased to 2.5 and stabilised afterwards at the rate of about 2.2–2.3 children per woman.

Ethnic Mongols account for about 95% of the population and consist of Khalkha and other groups, all distinguished primarily by dialects of the Mongol language. The Khalkha make up 86% of the ethnic Mongol population. The remaining 14% include Oirats, Buryats and others. Turkic peoples (Kazakhs and Tuvans) constitute 4.5% of Mongolia’s population, and the rest are Russian, Chinese, Korean and American nationalities.

Government and politics

Mongolia is a semi-presidential representative democratic republic with a directly elected President. The people also elect the deputies in the national assembly, the State Great Khural. The President appoints the Prime Minister, and nominates the Cabinet on the proposal of the prime minister. The constitution of Mongolia guarantees a number of freedoms, including full freedom of expression and religion. Mongolia has a number of political parties; the largest are the Mongolian People’s Party and the Democratic Party.

The President of Mongolia is able to veto the laws made by parliament, appoint judges and justice of courts and appoint ambassadors. The parliament can override that veto by a two-thirds majority vote. Mongolia’s constitution provides three requirements for taking office as president; the candidate must be a native-born Mongolian, be at least 45 years old, and have resided in Mongolia for five years before taking office. The president must also suspend their party membership. Battulga Khaltmaa, a former Minister, Member of the Parliament and member of the Democratic Party was elected as president on June 26, 2017 with 50.6% in the run-off and inaugurated on July 10 that year.  He served as Member of the State Great Khural from 2004 to 2016 and Minister of Roads, Transportation, Construction and Urban Development from 2008 to 2012.

Mongolia uses a unicameral legislature, The State Great Khural, with 76 seats, which is chaired by the speaker of the house. Its members are directly elected, every four years, by popular vote.

Economy

Economic activity in Mongolia has long been based on herding and agriculture, although development of extensive mineral deposits of copper, coal, molybdenum, tin, tungsten and gold have emerged as a driver of industrial production. Besides mining (21.8% of GDP) and agriculture (16% of GDP), dominant industries in the composition of GDP are wholesale and retail trade and service, transportation and storage, and real estate activities. 

Over the past 25 years, Mongolia has transformed into a vibrant democracy, with three times the level of GDP per capita and increasing school enrolments, and dramatic declines in maternal and child mortality. With vast agricultural and mineral resources and an increasingly educated population, Mongolia’s long-term development prospects are bright.

After a sharp slowdown during 2014-16 driven by a fall in commodity prices and declining FDI, the Mongolian economy strongly recovered in 2017 and 2018H1. GDP growth rate increased from 1.2 percent in 2016 to 5.3 percent in 2017 and 6.3 percent the first half of 2018. Strong growth momentum was supported by steady commodity exports (coal and copper), a recovery in FDI, and improved business sentiments as well as effective implementation of economic adjustment program by the government. Growth outlook remains positive in 2018 and beyond, mainly supported by robust growth in private consumption and private investment in mining and manufacturing.

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