Ulaanbaatar/MONTSAME/. The Australian Embassy in Mongolia on January 26 or Australia Day officially commenced the Australia-Mongolia Anniversary Grants Program (AMAGP). The program, implemented in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Australia and Mongolia, is supporting five Mongolian organisations to contribute to development, reduce poverty and promote people to people links.

The five successful applicants represent a wide range of organisations focusing on health, human rights, youth development, and agriculture in Mongolia.

“We are very pleased to be launching the AMAGP as part of our 50th anniversary celebration of our partnership with Mongolia. The AMAGP, as an extension of our annual Direct Aid Program (DAP), is working with Mongolian organisations in the civil society space on practical projects to reduce poverty and achieve sustainable, inclusive development”, said Chargé d’affaires Neil Sanderson.

“Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Australian Embassy has provided grant funding that supported organisations’ continued contribution to sustainable development outcomes despite the impact caused by COVID. Under these adjusted conditions we have supported communities to remain active in socially important projects while maintaining safety during the COVID restriction regime. As a continuation of these efforts, the Embassy is pleased to provide $500,000 in total funding to five exceptional organisations striving to leverage positive change in Mongolia.”.

The successful five organisations will implement the following activities: 

1.      Mongolian National Federation of the Blind (MNFB) – Promotion of rights for persons who are blind or partially sighted through advocacy for inclusive education

The project aims to improve capacity with the purpose of creating an inclusive and accessible learning environment for the visually impaired. By empowering rural blind people and advocating for an inclusive education of blind students, one of the main goals is to increase the social participation of blind people. Through trainings on human rights and personal development their goal is to educate people. This will be done through the modern technological information centres, which they are planning to establish as well as improve the existing ones.

2.      Mongolian Red Cross Society (MRCS) – Integrating community volunteers as extensions of Primary Health Centres /PHC/

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the MRCS has trained and mobilised over one thousand community health volunteers to support the contact tracing capacity of Primary Health Centres (PHC), vaccination centres and National Centre for Communicable Diseases (NCCD).  With AMAGP funding, MRCS in collaboration with the Ministry of Health will develop community health volunteering pilot program in the suburbs of Ulaanbaatar to assist primary health units during public health emergencies.

3.      National Cancer Council (NCC) – Setting up the rehabilitation centre for children with cancer in Mongolia 

The National Cancer Council NGO will establish the first rehabilitation centre for children with cancer in Mongolia. The centre will provide services including counselling, massage, physical rehabilitation activities, and art therapy. The centre will have many benefits for families, the most important one being a higher survival rate of children recovering from cancer. Upon completion, the centre will be able to provide services to more than 500 families annually.

4.      United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) – Assessment of the economic potential of disseminating modern sheep shearing technology and its training curriculum development 

As a key partner of the Government of Mongolia and the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Light Industry (MOFALI), UNIDO is helping to coordinate the expansion of modern sheep wool supply chains in the country, working with all stakeholders. The project will set the basis for a National Shearing Campaign by the Government of Mongolia. With AMAGP funding, UNIDO will conduct an assessment for improving the sustainability and employment opportunities of the wool value chain by adopting modern technology, developing a national curriculum and model-training programme for qualified sheep shearers. These will be in line with the standards of the Australian and New Zealand basic shearer qualifications and provide the basis for MOFALI’s national shearing campaign as code of best practice.

5.      Mongol Ecology Centre (MEC) – Youth Sustainability Corps: Youth Action – Unlocking Potentials and Inspiring Actions

Under its AMAGP project, the Mongol Ecology Centre is organising a sustainable entrepreneurship contest to unlock potentials and inspire actions among high school students across Mongolia. By creating a platform and network students will broaden their horizons and bring the change they want to see in their communities. Experts and mentors will work with the students to develop their ideas into sustainable project proposals and present them to potential sponsors. The applicants will gain valuable experience through various trainings and workshops, network opportunities, coaching and mentoring from industry professionals.

Embassy of Australia in Mongolia