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Global Press Journal Opens in Mongolia as Coronavirus Spreads Through Asia

The organization launched bureaus around the country just before COVID-19 concerns led officials to close schools and cancel public activities. It didn’t stop our reporters.

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Jessica Meyers Editor-in-Chief

Bennett Hanson Researcher

Terry Aguayo Fact Checker

Allison Braden Copy Editor

Namuun Tsegmid Translator

Austin Bachand Visuals Editor

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Published March 21, 2020

Global Press Journal opened six independent news bureaus in Mongolia just before the new coronavirus surged through neighboring China. Mongolia was among the first countries to secure borders, suspend public transportation and close educational institutions. Officials have confirmed 10 cases, most from recent government-chartered flights to return stranded citizens to Mongolia. Schools, from kindergartens to universities, will remain closed through April.

Map at top: China, where the coronavirus originated, has more than 81,000 confirmed cases, according to the World Health Organization. As of March 21, Mongolia’s Ministry of Health reports 10 confirmed cases.

Dolgormaa Sandagdorj, GPJ Mongolia Darisuren Altangerel practices teaching a video lesson in her empty elementary school classroom. Schools in Mongolia are closed from January 27 until April 30.

Myagmarsuren Battor, GPJ Mongolia Tsengelmaa Bat-Ochir, an Auto Terminal Trade employee, disinfects the inside of a bus amid concerns about the coronavirus. Mongolia was one of the first countries to secure borders and take other precautions as the virus spread.

Myagmarsuren Battur, GPJ Mongolia Chuluunchimeg Purvee, a student at the National University of Mongolia, left her dorm after the government closed the country’s universities in January as a precaution against the coronavirus and a worsening flu epidemic.

Khorloo Khokhnokhoi, GPJ Mongolia Seamstresses Uranzaya Gankhuyag, front, and Badam Genden sew face masks to sell to the public amid increasing concerns about the coronavirus in Mongolia. The country has confirmed 10 cases.

Global Press Journal in Mongolia

Even as the coronavirus consumes global attention, life in Mongolia continues. Across the world, Global Press Journal strives to provide comprehensive coverage that diversifies narratives beyond war, poverty, disaster and disease. Keep scrolling to read Global Press Journal's coverage from Mongolia.

In Mongolia, Yak Wool Is the New Cashmere

A local cooperative helps herders capitalize on a common Mongolian resource: yaks. Workers spin their soft undercoats into wool as soft as cashmere – and consumers around the world are taking notice.

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Did you know? Global media coverage of Mongolia is minimal. Most of it falls into three often-stereotypical categories: nomadic culture, mining and pollution.

To Fight Mongolia’s Drinking Crisis, Recovering Alcoholics Offer a Lifeline

Mongolia has one of the world’s highest alcoholism rates. At least one province recently banned the sale and service of alcohol to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. But increasing community initiatives are creating longer-term solutions through employment and support to people trying to get sober.

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Did you know? Nearly half of Mongolia’s 3.2 million residents live in the capital city, Ulaanbaatar. Global Press Journal operates news bureaus in six parts of the country, from the capital to the Gobi Desert.

As Students Battle Vitamin Deficiencies, Mongolia Allocates More Money for Meals

Mongolia has temporarily closed schools in hopes of preventing a coronavirus outbreak. But students have faced another health crisis for much longer – insufficient nutrition in school meals. Will a long-overdue increase in the country’s school nutrition budget do anything to help?

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Did you know? Free access to unbiased information in Mongolia is rare. The majority of the country’s 434 media outlets are politically affiliated.

Featured Photojournalism

Global Press Journal reporters have been photographing communities throughout Mongolia since they began training with Global Press Institute in 2019. These are some of those moments.

Uranchimeg Tsoghuu, GPJ Mongolia Naranbaatar Tsedensodnom, a dog breeder, pets one of his Mongolian bankhar dogs in Umnugovi province, Mongolia. Naranbaatar cares for 13 dogs and 11 puppies. Nomadic herders have relied on these indigenous dogs for hundreds of years to guard their flocks, but the breed’s population has steadily decreased. Breeders hope to save them from extinction.

Dolgormaa Sandagdorj, GPJ Mongolia Children at the Delgermurun Complex School, in Mongolia’s Khuvsgul province, race to solve a Rubik’s Cube to pass time before school starts.

Myagmarsuren Battur, GPJ Mongolia Sanjaajamts Battseren restores a stupa at Gandantegchinlen Monastery in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. Donors who fund the repairs, called “the owners of the charity,” choose which stupa to repair.

Tegshdelger Batbayar, GPJ Mongolia Ankhbayar Ganbold, 33, gives client Bayarchimeg an eyelash extension at Goo Naran, a salon in Mongolia’s Darkhan-Uul province.

Dolgormaa Sandagdorj, GPJ Mongolia Carpenters Tumennasan Lkhagvadorj, bottom, Battogtokh Galbadrakh, top left, and Nyamdorj Baasanjav assemble the roof of a new home in Murun, a district in Mongolia’s Khuvsgul province.

Odonchimeg Batsukh, GPJ Mongolia Players participate in a knucklebone shooting competition in Arkhangai, one of Mongolia’s 21 provinces. Mongolians have played the traditional flicking game for centuries.

Odonchimeg Batsukh, GPJ Mongolia Graduate students from the Education University of Mongolia compete in the rope pull at the school’s autumn olympics. Their class won this round and went on to compete in the championships.

Nansalmaa Oyunchimeg, GPJ Mongolia Chojamtsi Davanyam, 53, works as a fortune-teller near Gandantegchinlen Monastery in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. Davanyam says he knew by age 20 that he could foresee anyone’s fate.

Nansalmaa Oyunchimeg, GPJ Mongolia Burmaa Tsogbat milks a goat at her home in Bayandalai, a district in Umnugovi province, Mongolia.