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 UNICEF
Tsengel’s
family are also herders who live in a remote region far from town. She
stays at Bayarkhuu’s home during the school year and helps with the
animals after class.
Bayarkhuu and
Tsengel may not be classmates for much longer. As Bayarkhuu grows older,
he will face increasing pressure to drop out and work full-time. Now
that the Mongolian Government has privatized ownership of livestock,
more parents want their children to become involved in the family business.
Bayarkhuu is
hoping that he won’t have to make this choice.
“When you
devote yourself only to animal herding, you don’t know anything other
than looking after animals,” he says. “You miss out on knowledge
and education.”
Besides facing
the pressures of family and work, rural Mongolian students must often
attend classes in less than ideal facilities. Many schools suffer from
poor sanitation and overcrowded dormitories, further discouraging children
from staying in the classroom.
“Those factors
literally push the children outside the school,” said UNICEF Representative
in Mongolia Bertrand Desmoulins. “It is already very difficult for
them to be outside their home and family, and when they literally have
to suffer to be able to study, very often the call to go back to the
‘ger’ [a traditional Mongolian tent] is greater than the call for
staying in school.”
Unlike many
other countries, Mongolia has more girls than boys attending school.
Overall primary school enrolment is high, at more than 92 per cent,
and drop-out rates have gradually decreased to less than 3 per cent
nationwide. But in rural areas, particularly in the far west, many children
find it a struggle to go to class. Drop-out rates are much higher here,
with boys accounting for about 70 per cent of those who leave.
While more
girls than boys attend school in rural Mongolia, all students face pressures
that may keep them away from the classroom.
To help students
from rural and nomadic communities, UNICEF is helping improve conditions
in schools and dormitories while offering non-formal education programs
to those who cannot attend school. UNICEF also aims to train teachers
in better addressing their students’ needs, and to equip more schools
with safe water and sanitation systems.
Better conditions,
along with a wider array of opportunities for the children of herding
families, will make it easier for young people like Bayarkhuu to continue
their studies.
It’s all
part of an effort to adapt schools to serve communities on the move,
ensuring that every child has access to education.
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