Unemployment is a major problem (with various sources placing Ulaanbaatar’s unemployment at around 33%). Too many people are coming to Ulaanbaatar to look for work, yet not enough jobs are being created. Also, many firms decide to employ cheaper (and some would say harder-working) Chinese workers. Alcoholism is also a serious problem. Drunks are everywhere – a day doesn’t pass without seeing someone drunk either sitting/lying on the pavement or trying their best to navigate themselves around the city streets. I’m used to seeing people drunk in the UK, but not so much during the daytime. Also, Mongolian drunks often drink themselves unconscious. I guess there are many social and cultural reasons for the alcoholism, but what doesn’t help is that vodka is so cheap (a 70cl bottle can cost less than three dollars, and homebrew can be purchased even more cheaply)!
Racism, as I mentioned in a previous entry, is unfortunately an issue. The majority of Mongolians are quite anti-Chinese, and some are not over keen on foreigners (especially if they have Mongolians partners). There are some good reasons behind these negative stereotypes, but it is not a positive side to Mongolian life. The extremist political groups Dayar Mongol and Hoch Mongol have been known to carry out violent acts against foreigners, and their presence in Ulaanbaatar has always been a slight worry to me.
Public facilities are a bit grim. For example, you can see in the photo that Mongolian ambulances are not the most sophisticated in the world. Hospitals are pretty dingy, and staff often don’t have anywhere to wash their hands. I went to visit a Mongolian friend of mine, who had back problems. She had to share a room with another person, and had no separating screen for privacy. What didn’t help her morale was that the room next to her’s was the morgue! The road system is also a bit chaotic. A green man means that only half of a road’s traffic will stop, so a pedestrian still has to tackle a flow of oncoming traffic. The roads are also often full of holes. Add to this that Mongolian drivers are quite aggressive and reckless, and you have a pretty dangerous situation…
Poverty is certainly rife in Mongolia. Whilst the vast majority of people have enough money to buy food, many find life very tough. Around 30% of the population lives on less than a dollar a day, so the recent food prices rises have hit them hard. They will also struggle to buy enough fuel to heat their ger tents during the bitterly cold winter months. As I live in the inner city I only get glimpses of this poverty. Collectors roam the streets, looking for plastic bottles which they can sell on. They hardly get any money at all for a huge bag full of plastic, so a full day’s work often only raises $1. The collectors look wizened and often have skin diseases – it’s a very tough job. Street children are also a regular sight. A few weeks ago I saw a heartbreaking sight – a teenage boy was looking after his little sister, and they were both asleep on the side of the road. It’s quite shocking to see how someone so young not only has to survive on the streets, but has to look after his little sister too.
I often think I am very lucky. My salary and accommodation is a lot better than that of most Mongolians, despite technically being a “volunteer”. To put it in context, a doctor just earns $100 a month. I’m doing better than a fully-qualified doctor (and many other people who work a lot harder than me!). I also share a large appartment in a nice part of the city, and have my own room. I have met many Mongolians who just share one small room together. It’s quite surprising to see how people cramp together. The living room will be converted into a bed room after 10pm. Whilst I can imagine families living comfortably like this, I certainly would find the lack of privacy/personal space a bit of a problem.Just though I had better note down some of my observations, so that you can get a better understanding of Mongolia, and I can remember all of this when I’m back home! Lots of love to you all,
Robert
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