On the fist Wednesday of the new year (tomorrow 5 January at 7PM) we have in Cafe Amsterdam the fourth and last episode of the documentary series "On the Trail of Genghis Khan" about Tim Cope's horseback journey from Mongolia to Hungary.
People who saw the first episodes in the cafe really enjoyed it, so come tomorrow to watch the last episode, which is also interesting and understandable when you haven't seen the first parts. 

About Tim Cope:
Australian Tim Cope is traveler, author and film-maker, who first came to Mongolia via Russia by bicycle in 2000. Since then he has developed friendship with Tseren and Rik from Cafe Amsterdam and Tseren Tours. Tim was part of a row boat journey along the Yenisey river from lake Baikal to the Arctic in 2001. In 2004 he started a 3-year 10.000km journey on horseback from Mongolia to Hungary. He was chosen the Australian Adventurer of the year 2006. This summer he visited Mongolia again and did with Tseren a trek in the west of Mongolia. In July Tim gave a lecture in CafeAmsterdam.

About the film:
Tim just finished making a documentary about his journey on horseback from Mongolia to Hungary. This documentary will be broadcast in a series of 4 parts of 45 minutes on the French/German network Arte and the German television channel ZDF next year. A few parts of the documentary he has shown already in Cafe Amsterdam during his lecture in July

By Lynn Rhodes

The Ikh Nart Nature Reserve in the northwestern part of Dornogobi aimag was visited last month by a team from California State Parks. Since Mark Jorgensen, Superintendent (retired) of California’s Anza Borrego Desert State Park® first visited Mongolia in 2006; the relationship between the Ikh Nart Nature Reserve and California State Parks has been on-going. Ikh Nart and Anza Borrego Desert State Park® in California became official Sister Parks last year when the California State Park Commission voted unanimously to pass a Resolution of Support for the relationship between the two parks. Joint efforts include wildlife studies, natural and cultural resource protection, enforcement, training and ecotourism.

State Parks representatives, some for the first time and some returning, traveled on their own time and at their own expense to the official Sister Park. This year’s delegation included Jorgensen, and Lynn Rhodes, Chief, Law Enforcement Division (retiring), three State Park District Superintendents: Mike Wells, Ronie Clark, and Pam Armas, in addition to Anza Borrego Desert State Park® Ranger Steve Bier.

The visit helped to reinforce responsibilities these land mangers have to protect and preserve natural and cultural resources. Both old and new strategies were shared during the visit in order to continue successful stewardship of the sister parks.

Last year, staff from the two sister parks decided one of the best ways to improve protection at Ikh Nart was to better identify the reserve’s boundaries. The State Parks’ team had boundary signs made and brought with them for installation around the Reserve’s perimeter.

Coordinates for all signs were entered into a GIS system for ease in locating and monitoring. New signs were placed around approximately 1/3^rd of the reserve’s boundary during the joint work project. The team hopes to complete the boundary sign project during next year’s visit.

The new signs will help those who visit the reserve. Additionally, illegal mining and trespassing are some of the challenges in managing the reserve and good boundary signs will assist Ikh Nart’s Ranger staff in protecting the area.

The visit included a treat for the State Parks team to attend a local Naadam Festival near Ikh Nart. While there, a young boy received an eye injury and was provided first aid by State Park Ranger Steve Bier who was able to stabilize the injury.

The California State Parks team also brought several first aid packs for the Ikh Nart Rangers and shared a joint first aid training session the following day.

While working at the Reserve, the team also met and supported several local women who have started a crafts cooperative called “Ikh Nart is Our Future”. The women, led by their new Director, Boloroo, set up a table at Ikh Nart’s research camp with their newly made felt works. In addition to helping support the women, a portion of the proceeds from their work helps to provide on going support for the Ikh Nart Nature Reserve.

In March of this year, Ikh Nart’s camp manager Amgaa Sukh Amgalanbaatar, traveled to California’s Anza Borrego Desert State Park® for the second time, to assist with efforts there. The Ikh Nart and State Parks’ team said the joint project work increases awareness of what can be gained when working together to protect valuable resources. The measure of success, in part, will be that places like the Ikh Nart Nature Reserve and California’s State Parks will remain protected and accessible for the public to enjoy today and for generations to come.

Ikh Nart Nature Reserve: http://www.ikhnart.com

Lynn Rhodes has most recently been the Chief of California State Parks Law Enforcement Division. After 30 years with California State Parks, she is retiring at year’s end and will spend more time with her family, writing and supporting natural and cultural resource protection and enforcement in California and other locations such as the Ikh Nart Nature Reserve in Mongolia, California State Parks’ Sister Park

Coming  Wednesday 16 December at 7PM we will show in Cafe Amsterdam episode two of the documentary series "On the Trail of Genghis Khan" titled "In the Skin of a Wolf" by Tim Cope. Like the first episode, which we showed last week, this is actually a world premiere, because the documentary series has not yet been shown to public before.

About Tim Cope:
Tim Cope is traveler, author and film-maker, who first came to Mongolia via Russia by bicycle in 2000. Since then he has developed friendship with Tseren and Rik from Cafe Amsterdam and Tseren Tours. Tim was part of a row boat journey along the Yenisey river from lake Baikal to the Arctic in 2001. In 2004 he started a 3-year 10.000km journey on horseback from Mongolia to Hungary. He was chosen the Australian Adventurer of the year 2006. This summer he visited Mongolia again and did with Tseren a trek in the west of Mongolia. In July Tim gave a lecture inCafe Amsterdam.

About the film:
Tim just finished making a documentary about his journey on horseback from Mongolia to Hungary. This documentary will be broadcast in a series of 4 parts of 45 minutes on the French/German network Arte and the German television channel ZDF next year. A few parts of the documentary he has shown already in CafeAmsterdam during his lecture in July.
Wednesday 7PM we will show part two of the series, which is mainly about Kazachstan and the nomadic culture in this country. 

People who saw first episode last week really enjoyed it, so come tomorrow toCafe Amsterdam to watch the second part.

One day later on December 17 at 7PM we have in Cafe Amsterdam the book launch of the just released Odyssey guide book: Mongolia, Nomad Empire of Eternal Blue Sky by Carl Robinson. Everybody is welcome to join the launch. Of course the author will be there as well as the people from the Mongolia National Tourism Organization (MNTO) who jointly produced the book.
More news about the book launch will follow soon.

By Dan and Unuruu (Last updated 9 December)

Based on the Wave Index the current wave of the H1N1 pandemic in Mongolia is over. The restrictions set by the government have been lifted.

Latest updates

The number of reported swine flu (H1N1 influenza) cases in Mongolia has reached 1183 (as of December 9, 2009). There are 798 confirmed cases in the capitol city Ulaanbaatar and 385 confirmed cases throughout the country provinces. 26 deaths have been attributed  to the H1N1 pandemic. Ovorkhangai province has reported 56 cases, with 5 deaths, the highest in the country provinces. (Source: Mongolian Ministry of Health).

The precautions the government has taken have slowed down the fast spread of the flu. It seems the situation in Ulaanbaatar and in the provinces is becoming stable. Only few new cases have been reported in the past week.

See the spreadsheets for detailed analysis and graphs of the H1N1 flu pandemic in Mongolia.

severity index - 2% death Ratio

The H1N1 outbreak in Mongolia is at category 5 in the pandemic severity index. The severity index focuses on how life threatening  the pandemic is; it measures the Case Fatality Ratio (CFR) -  the percentage of deaths of the total cases reported.
In Mongolia 2 percent of the reported H1N1, cases have died (26 deaths out of 1183 cases).
In a normal flu season 0.1 percent of those contracting the disease, die.  Most of these deaths occur among those at high risk, like old people. The H1N1 virus causes deaths also among young and healthy people including two cases of pregnant women.

The Mongolian government has ordered the addition of respiratory equipment to hospitals and canceled all import tax on medical equipment in an effort to expedite the treatment of patients.

State of emergency

President Tsakhia Elbegdorj said: "We must recognize that the situation has reached the level of disaster. I am concerned about the rate of spread of the disease, which began to encroach on people's lives."
Following his statement, a state of emergency was declared. All public transportation out of Ulaanbaatar to the provinces was halted,  affecting the routine daily travel of thousands.

This precaution has slowed down the fast spread of the virus to the provinces.
Autumn school holiday has been extended; students will study at home via TV channels. Some markets have been closed. Public gathering has een banned.

The Pandemic

The first case of H1N1 was reported on October 12th; within a month, over 900 cases were reported.  Ulaanbaatar was the first places to be hit; the virus quickly spreading to the neighboring provinces.

The pandemic is not confined to Mongolia, it is a global pandemic with reported laboratory confirmed cases in 199 countries worldwide, including in the neighboring countries Russia and China.

The virus is a strain of the H1N1 virus that hit a third of the world population in 1918 with estimated 50-100 million dead.

Vaccines

Vaccines will be imported from Russia, China and from WHO (World Health Organization). A budget of MNT 753 million was allocated for purchasing medication.

The first batch of 45,000 vaccine doses is expected to arrive this week, from a total of 450,000.
The main manufacturer of H1N1 vaccine is the United Kingdom company GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK) It is the world's second largest pharmaceutical company. The company has announced it had production difficulties that limited the available supply of the vaccine. Shortages were reported globally.

The first round of vaccinations will be given to medical teams, emergency workers, border employees. The second round will include citizens at medical high risk, pregnant women, children and adults with chronic illnesses.

A total of MNT 6.4 billion was allocated from the CCF (Crisis Capital Fund) to purchase medicine, medical apparatuses, equipment for intensive care, disinfectants, ensure readiness of border checkpoints, grant the overtime payment and allowances to medical doctors and workers.

Personal Precautions

The Mongolian National Influenza center has published a set of personal precautions to prevent the spread of the H1N1 infection:

Early signs of influenza A(H1N1) are flu-like, including fever, cough, headache, muscle and joint pain, sore throat and runny nose, and sometimes vomiting or diarrhea.The main route of transmission of the new influenza A(H1N1) virus seems to be similar to seasonal influenza, via droplets that are expelled by speaking, sneezing or coughing. You can prevent getting infected by avoiding close contact with people who show influenza-like symptoms (trying to maintain a distance of about 1 meter if possible) and taking the following measures:
• Avoid touching your mouth and nose;
• Clean hands thoroughly with soap and water, or cleanse them with an alcohol-based hand rub on a regular basis (especially if touching the mouth and nose, or surfaces that are potentially contaminated);
• Avoid close contact with people who might be ill;
• Reduce the time spent in crowded settings if possible;
• Improve airflow in your living space by opening windows;
• Practice good health habits including adequate sleep, eating nutritious food, and keeping physically active.

(not including Ulaanbaatar with 741 cases)

Source: ToMongolia ToMongolia@Gmail.com

The information published in this article can be freely copied from ToMongolia

This article was written by Christopher de Gruben.

We have recently witnessed an historic moment; the long awaited ratification of the Oyu Tolgoi Investment Agreement. It is widely expected that this agreement will have a strong impact on all aspects of the Mongolian economy. It is meant by the Mongolian Government to send a strong signal to foreign institutional investors that the country is once again open for business as an attractive foreign investment destination.

Is that really the case? What is the investment climate now and how is it likely to change?

Mongolia has always been an attractive investment destination; it is a fast growing economy with easy access to its importing client’s base. It is one of the very few functioning democracies in the region, with an attractive tax regime coupled with few restrictions placed on foreign investors. Mongolia boasts high literacy rates, a young dynamic population and an openness to the outside world seldom seen in other Asian countries.

Mongolia’s economy is centered on agriculture and mining. It has rich mineral resources, and copper, coal, molybdenum, tin, tungsten, and gold account for a large part of industrial production, GDP per capita in 2006 was $2,100. It’s GDP has risen steadily since 2002 at a mean rate of 7.5% according to an official 2006 estimate.

When I first arrived in Mongolia, the signs of transition from a centrally planned economy to a market driven system were obvious for all to see, the cars were getting bigger (and shinier), the clothes more colourful, the shops were being filled with exotic products, skirts were getting smaller (and still are) and property prices were exploding.

Mongolia has moved incredibly fast in terms of progress since then but despite it being less exotic now, it is still the country of all opportunities, the start up costs to business are still very low, the cost of corruption is relatively small and the absence of organized crime is welcomed. The quality of services and the availability of products have improved immeasurably, I currently have Dutch cheeses, Perrier water and Spanish ham in my fridge, the restaurants are world class and international 5 star hotel chains such as Shangri-La are being established in Ulaanbaatar. Louis Vuitton is opening this month its flagship store while Ferragamo is getting ready to move in, Mongolia has finally joined the globalization game, albeit with some reluctance.

This breakneck speed of progress is being sustained by wide ranging speculations in the upcoming mining boom. Mining itself is a very capital intensive operation with large start up costs and high political and commodity risks (but with high potential returns). Smaller investors such as myself, find the supply chain more interesting. This was equally evident to the 49?ers (1849) from the Californian gold rush and all subsequent mining booms, it is the sale of picks and shovels, the operation of saloons and brothels that were consistently considered to be the most stable and profitable businesses.

The $5bn investment amount promised by Rio Tinto and Ivanhoe Mines for the Oyu Tolgoi project will be part of this profitable Mongolian supply chain; this is only one of many large upcoming projects which are expected to contribute to it. It is easily conceivable that this service sector will become a multibillion dollar industry within the next few years.

Over the last five years, I have myself tried to take every opportunity I could and have made small strategic investments, my initial forays have been in residential property, followed by the establishment of a “subway style” restaurant called Sub’baatar and the incorporation of a small consulting firm, Mad & Dysfunctional, post-trauma consulting, dedicated to assisting foreign investors setting up in Mongolia.

All of those investments are based towards taking advantage of the developing supply chain and making the most of the growing economy, some of my investments have been hugely profitable while for others the verdict is still out. I have made many mistakes during that time but have by and large recovered, Mongolia is still a forgiving environment and as long as you are willing to work hard, it is still possible to succeed.

Working in developing countries has its own generic problems; red stamp bureaucracy, lack of basic infrastructure, poor skill sets amongst the domestic labour force, low levels of services, difficulty of enforcing regulations, unstable regulatory environment to name but a few. In Mongolia, this is balanced with a vast pool of opportunities for those willing to take the risk. The country is being revolutionized by the return of many young Mongolians to their home country with new skill sets and the increasing arrivals of young expats keen to establish themselves. The business environment is improving fast, new ventures are started daily, and improvements are visible on a daily basis, it is this fast paced change that constitutes the excitement of working in emerging markets.

For Mongolia to continue moving forward, it will be obliged to have increased interaction with the mega power that China is fast becoming, it not only represents an increasingly important trade partner for imports and exports but also a strong potential political and economical ally. As the influence of China grows, Mongolia needs to rise along with it. At the moment I have the distinct feeling that Mongolia “loves to hate” China, while an element of self preservation is understandable, greater co-operation will be essential in the future. The third neighbor policy, which is currently being  pursued by Mongolia, is an innovative way to hedge the risks of being landlocked between two superpowers while taking full advantage of trade potential with its neighbours, an excellent political strategy that will pay off in the long term.

The future of Mongolia is never the less fraught with dangers; corruption might quickly become the source of its downfall, it is therefore important to effectively restrict the opportunities for temptation. This has to start with a true and real separation between public servants (at all levels) and their own business interests.

Corruption is not an emerging market particularity but a global phenomenon, not a week goes by without an international scandal hitting the world medias; but the presence of those scandals and its associated public outcry is an important indicator of a functioning democratic system. Mongolia is currently lacking in large scale corruption scandals.

The foundation of creating a strong and powerful Mongolia will be established through reforms towards a more powerful independent judicial system and the greater enforcement of its law. It is my impression that while the judicial system has a good legal grounding (despite its often contradictory and confusing laws) the enforcement of those regulations are haphazard at best.

The future of Mongolia is bright, a new chapter in its history has just started, we can only hope that its ruling class will make the right reforms to make sure this process continues while making the most of current opportunities for growth.

More articles by this author available here.