Participatory Poverty Assessment in Mongolia

This comprehensive report is based on a study of 1,516 participants from around Mongloia, and seeks to capture the qualitative aspects of poverty as experienced by the Mongolian poor. The participants were asked to:

• Discuss changes in perceived levels of well-being;
• Analyze livelihood sources;
• Capture non-income dimensions of poverty and vulnerability from the period of 2000 to 2004.

The study highlights:

• The methodology and process used by the researchers to ensure that a sufficient mix of rural and urban, young and old participants were selected;
• A discussion on the cultural norms in Mongolia for an understanding of well-being and poverty:
  • The ideas of poverty and well-being had to be discussed so that it was clear what it meant to the participants and how they manifest themselves in their lives.
• A discussion of the variations in the conceptual understanding of poverty and well-being as understood by rural versus urban participants;
• A discussion on the causes of poverty and vulnerability as understood by the participants, including an analysis of who are the most vulnerable and what are the drivers of this vulnerability, such as alcohol and gambling;
• The importance of and, limited access to, credit. This limited access often means that people who are having financial problems must use informal sources.

The report covers various facets of poverty and the general life of most Mongolians. These include, education, health care, electricity, veterinary services, and land registration.