Anjali Sharma
GG News Bureau
UNITED NATIONS, 9th Feb. According to the Office of the UN Resident Coordinator in Mongolia and other UN agencies on Friday warned that the ongoing “white and iron” dzud extreme weather in Mongolia is at a “critical” level, with over 90 per cent of the country facing high levels of risk from the unique weather phenomenon.
The Office of the UN Resident Coordinator in Mongolia.said that about 190,000 herder households are struggling with inadequate feed, skyrocketing prices and heightened vulnerabilities.
It stressed that herding and livestock have traditionally been integral to Mongolia’s economy, culture and way of life.
It estimated that there are over 64 million livestock this winter season in Mongolia.
“The increasing severity of weather conditions further exacerbates the crisis, underscoring the urgent need for humanitarian assistance and sustainable solutions to support Mongolia’s rural communities and traditional livelihoods,” the Office said in an update this week.
It noted that this is the second year in a row that the country has faced these severe conditions. Last winter about 70 per cent of the country was affected.
Dzuds, a peculiar slow-onset disaster unique to Mongolia, are extreme winters characterized by freezing temperatures, heavy snow and ground so frozen that animals cannot reach pasture.
These conditions are commonly preceded by a dry summer with equally scant grazing, leaving livestock unable to build up the stores of fat they need for winter.
According to the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific the frequency and intensity of dzuds have been increasing since 2015 due to worsening impacts of climate change and poor environmental governance.
The dual “white” and “iron” dzud is marked by a very deep snow cover preventing animals from accessing grass (white dzud) combined with a short thaw and subsequent hard freeze that locks up pastures in ice (iron dzud).
UNICEF said that over 258,000 people and 100,000 children have been affected as roads obstructed by heavy snow, left children unable to access vital health, nutrition, education and social services.
It added that herder families are most directly impacted by the dzud, often have to leave their children in the care of relatives or at boarding schools, increasing protection risks and causing psychological stress.
Immediate needs are funding for road cleaning programmes, medicines, radios to support remote learning and child protection.
The Government has activated its emergency operations Centre and designated the Deputy Prime Minister to lead and coordinate the response.
UNICEF had dispatched 120 emergency health kits, 20 hygiene kits and “safe haven” child protection kits to provinces.
It has a 555 hygiene kits ready for dispatch and is procured 20 integrated health kits to support the response, including supplying vitamin D to young children.
UNICEF will support the distribution of portable digital audio devices pre-loaded with audio lessons to herder households with school-age children to ensure continuity of learning, it added.
