[Director Oh Myung-gyu’s Mongolia Report] Mongolia, So Similar to Us, Begins with K-Agriculture

Mongolia, a country similar in both face and heart
Mongolia is a country with many similarities to us. Facial features are similar, and so is the presence of Mongolian spots. During the Goryeo period, Mongol forces invaded and caused hardship for our people, but strangely, unlike with some other neighboring countries, Koreans do not dislike Mongolians. Mongolians also have a good impression of Koreans.

Mongolia’s population is about 3.6 million to 3.7 million, and more than about 10% of them have visited Korea. Even now, about 60,000 people are working or attending school in Korea, and many people also visit Korea for medical care and tourism. In both Mongolian cities and rural areas, Korean ramen, kimchi, and seaweed are sold in supermarkets, and more than about 70% of convenience stores in Mongolia are operated by Korean companies. In Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia, a Korean hypermarket chain is operating up to its fourth branch, and a fifth branch is scheduled to open soon. The number of Korean tourists visiting Mongolia also exceeds about 160,000 every year. In this way, Mongolia and Korea have maintained a long relationship, both in the past and at present.

Climate change has arrived... advanced agricultural technology is slow to follow
Climate change is making life difficult for people in many sectors around the world. Mongolia is also experiencing many difficulties due to climate change. Over the past 100 years, Mongolia’s temperature has risen by 2.5℃, higher than the global average increase of 0.7℃. Yet severe cold still kills many livestock, while in summer droughts and floods alternately cause hardship. It is said that about 300,000ha to 350,000ha of Mongolia’s beautiful grasslands are becoming degraded every year.

However, the introduction of advanced agricultural technologies that can raise agricultural productivity remains slow. It is no exaggeration to call Mongolia a country of nomads. At present, livestock numbers are high at about 70 million head, but productivity is very low, and although rice consumption is increasing, not a single grain of rice is produced there. In addition, large quantities of vegetables are also imported from neighboring countries. For these reasons, food prices reportedly surged up to fourfold during the COVID-19 period. 

Interest in food security has recently increased
After COVID-19, the Mongolian government also recognized these problems and is currently promoting a 'Food Revolution Movement' led by the Office of the President. In addition, a summit between the Republic of Korea and Mongolia was held on July 9. At that time, food security was addressed as a major agenda item, and Korean President Lee Jae-myung also mentioned support for Mongolia’s livestock sector. With this as a catalyst, agricultural cooperation between the two countries is expected to strengthen further. At the same time, K-agriculture is also working with the Mongolian government to bring change to Mongolian agriculture through agricultural technology.

I work at the KOPIA Mongolia Center, operated by Korea’s Rural Development Administration, the central institution for Mongolia’s K-agriculture. We apply Korean agricultural technologies to suit Mongolia, and after on-farm verification, expand and disseminate those technologies. 

The winter of 2023, what 'dzud' left behind
I cannot forget the winters of 2003 and 2004, when I first came to Mongolia. That winter, because of extreme cold and heavy snowfall, I witnessed livestock unable to eat grass covered by snow, starving to death on the steppe, and many dead animals piled up beside trash-dumping areas near gers, the dwellings of nomads. Along the roads, I also saw countless livestock that had tried to find grass but failed and ultimately died. It was reported that the number of livestock that died that year reached about 8 million to 10 million head. 

This phenomenon is called dzud (zud, sudden heavy snowfall and cold waves in winter). Human casualties were also significant. In the end, farmers who lost their livestock flocked to the city of Ulaanbaatar with no measures in place, and numerous Mongolian ger districts formed irregularly on the outskirts and hills of Ulaanbaatar, giving rise to social problems such as unemployment, health issues, and poverty. 

'Selenggeos',  becoming Mongolia’s rainbow
As mentioned earlier, Mongolia has vast grasslands, which provide many advantages for livestock raising and agriculture. Of course, there are also problems that must be overcome. But I believe that if advanced agriculture is connected and introduced, Mongolia could become a wealthy country through agriculture or livestock alone.

A country with unlimited resources—a strong sun, vast land, and sufficient groundwater— 'Mongolia', we seek to open Mongolia’s potential through K-agriculture. In Mongolian, Koreans are called 'Selenggeos'. The Mongolian word Selenggeos means rainbow. K-agricultural technology, which gives the rainbow-like hope of redesigning the future of Mongolian agriculture beyond simple international cooperation by addressing Mongolia’s climate crisis, securing food security, and strengthening farmers’ capabilities, has begun in Mongolia.

Next time, I would like to give an interesting introduction to how Korean agricultural technology is changing Mongolia on the vast grasslands of Mongolia, the country genetically closest to us.