The UB Post-Leading English News

 The current situation has caused a loss of hundreds of thousands of livestock, leaving numerous herders without any source of livelihood.

Official figures indicate that approximately 90 percent of the country is suffering from zud conditions, with snowfall reaching between 20-120 centimeters. The average temperature in northern Mongolia has dropped to -35 degrees Celsius, with temperatures in the rest of country ranging between-17 to -22 degrees Celsius. So far, the coldest temperature of -47 degrees was recorded in Uvs Province. As of 16 January 2010, a total of 198 soums in 19 provinces are suffering from severe weather.

According to estimates by the Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), a total of 786,639 heads of livestock have perished, 89 percent of which belong to the ten worst affected provinces. The total loss of livestock is approximately 17 per cent of the estimated 43.6 million heads of livestock in the country. Some five people died during a recent snowstorm.
On January 11, 2010, a high state of preparedness was declared in Gobi-Altai Province due to the worsening situation there. All traffic was blocked and livestock could not go to pasture due to heavy snowfall. Last week, the cabinet made the following decisions:

• To submit a request to sell 4,000 tonnes of hay and 5,000 tonnes of fodder valued at Tg 1.7 billion (approximately US$1.15 million) at a 50 percent discount to the herders of the most affected provinces

• To deliver a national appeal to municipal councils, governmental and non-governmental organizations as well as international organizations, and organize a campaign for assistance.
• To process 30,000 tonnes of red meat which doesn’t meet minimum food standards into fodder and exchange it for stocked meat, or else lend it to the herders jointly with provincial administration and study the possibility of exporting meat stocked by herders.

• To dispatch emergency working groups to the 12 most affected provinces.

Consequently, the government-appointed working groups are now currently operating in the eight most affected provinces, and there are plans to mobilize cross-country armed forces and border troops’ vehicles to open blocked roads to deliver hay, fodder, food, clothes and medicine to the herding families. The Mongolian government plans to allocate a total of Tg315 million (US$ 213,559) from its funds to Dundgobi, Zavkhan, Uvurkhangai, Bayankhongor, Gobi-Altai, Umnugobi, Arkhangai, Bayan-Ulgii, Tuv, Uvs, Khuvsgul and Khovd Provinces to deliver urgent health and social care services to herders. Additionally Tg5-8 billion is required to overcome consequences of disaster, if weather forecasts predicting more snow through March would be as forecasted, said Prime Minister Batbold. As local source is in short, hays and fodder will be purchased from Russia and China, he added.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Food, the number of affected herding families is estimated to be nearly 120,000. More snowfall is anticipated between January and March, with temperatures ranging between -28 and -45 degrees Celsius, as reported by the Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology.
The country has launched a national appeal to assist the herders who are suffering most due to their nomadic life-styles. In response to the appeal, a large scale campaign has been developing locally and internationally. For instance, employees from various public and private organizations have donated one-day from their salaries to herders in the most affected areas.