ACF has started helping Mongolia following three “Dzuud”(1) which decimated one third of the Mongolian livestock and hardly damaged rancher’s family’s livelihoods, causing the migrations of the poorest of them to urban centers and Oulan Bator. This conjectural situation has been aggravated by a structural issue linked to the hard transition from a planned economy to a market one in the 1990’s, leading to a society dislocation and an increase of the number of people living under the poverty line.

ACF has started its interventions in Mongolia in December 2001 in order to answer to the urgent need of the poorest population groups (homeless, street children, poorest) in the “ger” areas of Oulan Bator and Bayan Ulgii. In order to ensure a mid-term and long-term help, ACF has implemented a program to develop the culture of vegetable gardens in spring 2002 in Oulan Bator, and in 2004 I Bayan Ulgii by involving families, cooperative organizations and associations until 2008. Further, a nutritional program has been launched between November 2004 and December 2008 in collaboration with the Health Minister to detect acute under-nutrition, promote education and treat severe acute under-nutrition for children.

In 2008, a water source rehabilitation program was implanted in “ger” areas in Oulan Bator. Oulan Bator, the capital, is facing a real urban explosion and an important part of the population, the “gers” inhabitants, don’t have access to a good water supply. The  thousands of steppes migrants are living in yurts and slums districts in unacceptable living conditions.

To fight against the idea that “there is no solution to the water and sanitation access issue in gers districts”, ACF has implemented a research program in 2009, which aims to: create a new water supply system and an economic and ecologic toilets model that could be largely installed in those districts. This program includes a hygiene aspect, especially in schools, in order to avoid the water diseases spread in a non-hygienic environment.

Another natural disaster “dzuud” hit Mongolia during winter 2009-2010. ACF immediately responded to the emergency in the “aimag” of UVS’s province by a food help (food stamp for livestock and for the most vulnerable populations) for the most affected ranchers. An evaluation was made on this operation in 2011 which concluded on the necessity of lon-term food security programs and disaster risk management programs.

ACF-Mongolia is trying to develop a national strategy in order to develop water, sanitation and hygiene research activities, and to encourage the promotion of water access and sustainable sanitation solutions.

ACF is going to start two food security needs evaluations, one in the same region as the water, sanitation and hygiene project in Oulan Bator, and the other one in the West of Mongolia, in order to determine if it would be possible and relevant to treat current and future causes of food insecurity for families. ACF is also taking into account disasters management and emergency response capacities in Mongolia.