Maandag 14 oktober 2024
Diplomatie, Openbaar bestuur & Politiek
dr. Luvsanvandan
Mongolië: Een glorieus verleden, een veelbelovende toekomst
Mongolia is a very large country (1,564,000 km), of which a substantial part is desert, mountains and tundra, with a population of ca 3,5 million. Ulaanbataar, the capital and largest city, is home to roughly half the population. A substantial part of the population lives from cattle breeding. But in the 20th century mining (coal, copper, gold, ) in the North has become an important economic activity as well. Recently the mining of very large copper and gold deposits in the South near Oyu Tolgoi has started.
Mongolia is a country with a long and glorious past. In the era of Genghis Kahn and his successors (12th and 13th century) this was the largest country that ever existed in history. It stretched from the river Danube to the Pacific Ocean. However gradually various parts of the empire fell apart. In the 18th century the remnants joined the Chines empire. In 2012 after the fall of the Chines Qing dynasty the country became semi-autonomous and in 1920 fully independent.
There is hardly any infra-structure (roads, railways) in the country. A substantial part of the population still lives in gers ( round tents). For the majority of them cattle herding (sheep, goats, yaks, camels, horses) is the major source of income. Related to this is the cashmere industry; until the rise of mining the most important export product.
Since the sixties of the 20th century mining became an important business and the most important export activity. Initially the most important mines were in the North of the country and connected directly with the Soviet-Union and its successor states by railways. Later important mines were developed in other parts of the country. Apart from coal, copper and gold, iron ore, tungsten, molybdenum, silver, zinc, uranium and rare earth deposits are substantial.
The government stimulates new economic activities and would like to expand the infra-structure. To these purposes it is assisted by international financial institutions like the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank en the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).
Dr. Bold Luvsanvandan attended universities in Mongolia and in Germany. He was a member of Parliament. From 2008 to 2012 he served as Minister of Defence and from 2012 to 2014 as Minister of Foreign Affairs. From 2020 to present he is Security and Defense Advisor to the President of Mongolia. Since 2012 he is Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary.
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