Leadership team of Save the Children Japan paid a courtesy visit to Mr. Ts.Tuvaan, Member of the Parliament

Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, December 13, 2023 – Mr. Ts. Tuvaan, Member of the Parliament of Mongolia receives Mrs. Maiko Fujii, Director of International Programs at Save the Children Japan, during her official working visit to Mongolia from December 11-15, 2023.

Ms. Maiko Fujii, Director of International Programs, Save the Children Japan and Mr. L. Bayan-Altai,  Country Manager of Save the Children in Mongolia paid a courtesy visit to Mr. Ts.Tuvaan, Member of the Parliament of Mongolia on 13th December, 2023 in the Parliament House.

Mr. Ts.Tuvaan warmly welcomed Save the Children’s representatives and highlighted the importance of fruitful cooperation with international organizations and that the Parliament and its members have always been willing to maintain effective collaboration. Especially, he acknowledged that Save the Children has been and continue to be one of the most important partners among all other international organizations being at the forefront of many positive changes in the country. He stated that Save the Children’s interventions within its child protection, education, and humanitarian programs have yielded significant positive impacts in the lives of thousand of parents and children of Mongolia. Mr. Ts.Tuvaan highlighted the contributions that Save the Children made in child protection and child rights sectors.

Mr. Ts.Tuvaan said: “Last winter, many soums (county) of Tuv province were affected by the Dzud disaster. I have requested international organizations to intervene in alleviation of its impact and help herders. Save the Children responded to this call and supported four soums that were hit hardest by the Dzud. The soums, named Arkhust, Erdene, Erdenesant and Bornuur were part of the humanitarian assistance of Save the Children where herders received hay and fodder for their weak animals, cash support to afford their basic needs and children living in the dormitories received hygiene kits. A total of 96 million Mongolian Tugriks (equivalent to 29,000 USD) were spent for Tuv province only. I wish to extend my deepest gratitude on behalf of hundreds of herder families and their children”. He also highlighted that other provinces of Western Mongolia, namely Khovd, Bayankhongor, Zavkhan and Gobi-Altai received similar humanitarian assistance, especially hygiene kits, warm blankets, winter boots and other supplies were a much needed and timely support for children staying in the dormitories, away from their parents.

Mr. Ts.Tuvaan mentioned that detrimental impacts of climate change, resulted in  ever-increasing extreme weather events, such as Dzud, drought, dust and snow storms severely affect the lives of nomadic herders and their children. In such circumstances, herders can think of their livestock survival only, leaving behind the needs of their children. All monetary resources are dedicated to their livestock as their livelihood depends on animals. In order to survive these difficult times, sometimes children drop out of schools to help their parents. As well, there are other challenges related to modern technologies development, such as internet addiction, children becoming victims of cyber crimes and so on. We need to address these challenges with collective efforts.

Mrs. Maiko Fujii, Director of International Programs at Save the Children Japan expressed her gratitude to Mr. Ts.Tuvaan, Member of the Parliament of Mongolia for his warm welcome. She appreciated him for supporting Save the Children and bringing forward child protection and child rights issues. Mrs. Maiko Fujii said: “Save the Children is interested in working to mitigate impacts of climate change and build more resilient communities. I am concerned that extreme weather events, such as drought, Dzud, dust and snow storms are happening more frequently than usual. These events negatively impact herders’ livelihood, income and health conditions and as a result, children are affected. That’s why we need to seriously consider how we shall address this issue”. Mrs. Maiko Fujii also highlighted that Save the Children is developing its strategy to cope with climate change impacts in Mongolia and therefore, is open to collaborate with the Government and other organizations in the country.