Poverty rate in Mongolia

by Erdene

A new study by the National Statistic’s Office of Mongolia found that 35 out of every one hundred Mongolia’s currently live in poverty, meaning that about 980,000 people in the country do not have money to buy sufficient food for themselves.

The National Statistic’s Office conducted research for their report, called “Social and Economy Research of Family”, from July 1, 2007 to June 1, 2008. The World Bank promoted the research with finances and equipment, which allowed the office to do research that was up to the international standard in terms of methodology. The study concluded that all of Mongolia (including Ulaanbaatar) and especially western Mongolia are affected by poverty.

In Ulaanbaatar one of five people is living in poverty, while three in ten are impoverished in central aimags and the country’s western regions. In eastern and the Khangai regions people experience similar levels of poverty, although some areas have up to 50 percent of their population suffering from poverty. In Ulaanbaatar and urban areas poverty hovers around 27 percent while it reaches 47 percent in countryside or rural areas.

The levels have actually decreased, down almost an entire percentage point from 2002-2003, when the poverty level was 36.1 percent across the country. Since that time, poverty has fallen in urban areas from 30.3 percent to 26.9 percent, but this has risen in rural areas from 43.4 percent to 46.6 percent. Currently Mongolia’s population is split almost 50-50 between urban and rural areas.

While the research showed that the overall rate of poverty dropped, it also suggested that the gap between poor and rich is widening in the country. The difference is now considerable higher than the international average. About 80 representatives from the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, and Mongolia’s government, as well as the UNDP and civil society organizations expressed interest in the research’s results. A detailed report about the findings will soon be made available, according to the national Statistic’s Office.

B.Bulgamaa
THE UB POST