Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/ Nine organizations have received grants from Australia’s Direct Aid Program (DAP) announced by the Australian Embassy in Mongolia. These successful applicants represent a wide range of organizations focusing on health and emergency services, human rights and youth development through sport.

“Our annual direct aid program works with Mongolian organizations and civil society on practical projects to reduce poverty and achieve sustainable, inclusive development”, said Ambassador Dave Vosen.

Projects selected in 2019-2020

1. Integration and rehabilitation of children with disabilities through sports by the Mongolian Para Boccia Federation

The project will empower children with cerebral palsy and muscular dystrophy across the country through regional awareness raising activities, participation in national competitions and tournaments and in-country training workshops on Boccia sports.  The project activities will reach an estimated 5241 children from Ulaanbaatar and the provinces. 

2. Economic empowerment of women through green use promotion by Special Centre for Social Protection under City Mayor Office

The project will help extremely poor and homeless women and men in Ulaanbaatar to earn income. The Special Centre for Social Protection will organise skills training to produce and sell cotton bags to replace plastic bags as a part of Mongolia’s policy to promote ecofriendly production and consumption. 

3. Improving the Livelihood of the Rural Vulnerable Families through Developing Hydroponic Advanced Technology by Bridge of Health Development NGO

The project will help rural households in Batsumber Soum, Tuv Province to increase income opportunities through piloting a fodder greenhouse farm with advanced hydroponic technology and advocating for using the technology across the soum and nearby areas. 

4. Sergelt Mobile Drop-in Centre by Good Neighbour Society

The project will help support homeless and people facing addiction in Ulaanbaatar to access recovery and rehabilitation, social reintegration programs. 

5. Strengthening Call-Recall System of Cancer Screening

The project will help the National Cancer Centre improve its screening and register system to enable patients access to services faster and improve monitoring of their condition. 

6. Sewing Up Mongolia by Family Agricultural Resources Mongolia

The project will support poor rural women in Uvurkhangai Province to generate job and income opportunities through engaging in an eco-business. They will set up a small scale sewing business to make finished products from recycled waste. The project will also support them to market and sell their eco products. 

7. Protection Service in Bulgan soum, Bulgan province

The project will help the province to effectively protect and prevent domestic violence in Bulgan Soum by providing awareness raising activities and training, and establishing a shelter for victims of domestic violence, women and children.

8. Vocational Training Space for Boys in Prison by Christina Noble Children Foundation

The project will help children in prison and provide social integration through access to an improved vocational skills learning environment and training courses. 

9. Strengthening Acute Medical Care through Capacity Building in Tsogtstsetsii intersoum hospital and RDTC in Dalanzadgad by MDG 1 Collaborating Centre for Emergency and Essential Surgical Care at MNUMS

The project will help improve the skills and quality of health services at the soums in Umnugovi province through ‘on the job’ place training and medical instrument supplies. The best doctors from Ulaanbaatar will visit the soum hospitals to perform surgery and train local doctors and nurses and provide medical guidelines and handbooks.

DAP is an annual competitive flexible small grants program funded from Australia’s aid budget. Since 2003 DAP has assisted over 100 Mongolian organizations to implement more than 130 projects across a broad spectrum of social and economic sectors, including poverty reduction, health, agriculture, youth empowerment, gender and disability inclusiveness and other social and economic issues important to national and subnational development.

source: mongolia.embassy.gov/au