Get a fresh start. But with commodity prices rebounding and the IMF swooping in for an imminent bailout, many feel the worst may be over. Can the country β so ripe with potential β transform this moment into the lasting stability for which its people and businesses have waited so long?
In spite of the cold, people could be seen lugging containers of water from a roadside water station to their homes in one of the many ger districts on the outskirts of the city. These districts are home to more than , residents, most living in poverty. The districts lack water supply systems, leaving residents no choice but to buy well water at nearby stations for 1 tugrik 0.
Ger districts sprang up in post-communist Mongolia when new land laws automatically entitled each citizen to a free sq-meter plot of land in designated urban areas. This prompted massive urban migration starting in the late s by former nomadic herders looking for better education for their children and a more modern lifestyle.
They brought their traditional tents, or gers, onto their plots, and settled down. The land policy, however, was not accompanied by an urban development policy. Neither the national nor the city government has provided any infrastructure in ger districts other than electric power. At the edge of one ger district is a small supermarket. The year-old store manager, who calls herself Tugszaya, said 8 out of 10 of the adults she knows have lost their low-skill jobs, such as load handling or truck driving, during the past few years.
Look how few shoppers we have. One reason for this is the lack of education needed to secure better, more stable jobs. For ger districts lacking even schools for children, adult training centers for former herders remain a distant dream. Copper, gold, iron ore and other metals made up 67 per cent of exports that year, while coal and crude oil made up 23 per cent. A slight slowdown in demand or supply in this neighbouring giant could easily play havoc with the Mongolian economy.
