In Asia: Weekly Insight and Features from Asia

In January, development and philanthropy veteran and former president of the American University in Cairo David D. Arnold began as The Asia Foundation’s new president. In his first interview, he speaks to In Asia about development challenges in Asia, the shifting economic landscape, and the Foundation’s cutting-edge work in good governance. Read the interview.

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Mongolia has an abundance of natural resources, from vast grasslands and forests to endangered species and enviable reserves of minerals and energy resources. This abundance underlies the country’s rich cultural heritage, wild beauty, and potential for economic prosperity.

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One year ago in this blog, Asia Foundation chief economist Bruce Tolentino expressed “cautious optimism” about the prospects for global recovery and Asian growth in 2010. His positive prediction for Asia was more than fulfilled, in spite of a dispiriting lag in U.S. recovery and severe economic crises in the Eurozone. In 2010, Asia’s diverse [...]

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On December 9, The Asia Foundation’s Mongolia office released its 10th Corruption Benchmarking Survey (CBS), the only tool that measures both public perceptions of institutional corruption, and the impact of petty corruption on the day-to-day life of Mongolian households. Through random, face-to-face interviews, a sample of 1,000 adults were asked about bribe requests, frequency, and [...]

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Mongolia, a vast but sparsely-populated country, established centers of urban administration and governance only over the past 60 years or so. Until the mid-1940s, Buddhist monasteries and residences of nobility were the only truly fixed settlements, and virtually all citizens lived in portable structures while herding sheep, horses, and other cattle on the country’s open [...]

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The signs of climate change are already evident in Mongolia as in many other countries in the world. Mongolia’s fragile ecosystems, pastoral animal husbandry, and rain-fed agriculture are extremely sensitive to climate change. As such, Mongolia’s traditional economic sectors and its people’s nomadic way of life are highly vulnerable to climate change. Mongolia joined the [...]

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Under a blazing sun and temperatures rising to nearly 90 degrees, Mongolia’s Prime Minister Batbold Sukhbaatar and all 12 of his cabinet members held their August 27 cabinet meeting seated at tables and chairs set up in the sand in the middle of the Gobi Desert, 415 miles south of the capital Ulaanbaatar. Wearing green [...]

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Early this month, The Asia Foundation’s Digital Media team traveled to Khishig-Undur Soum Village, 200 miles northwest of Mongolia’s capital Ulaanbaatar, to meet this fourth-grade class and to deliver books donated by Books for Asia. Vote for your favorite children’s book in the video, and a copy of the winning book will be delivered to [...]

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The paved road from Mongolia’s capital Ulaanbaatar ends abruptly with a pile of rocks and a sign bearing an exclamation point, as if the rocks alone weren’t reason enough to stop. “From here it’s going to be a bumpy and long ride,” said Myangaa, our driver for the day-long journey into Khishig-Undur. And with that, [...]

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The vehicles traveling from Khovsgol Province in northwest Mongolia to Ulaanbaatar have to spend the night on the way because it’s such a long journey. These roads that connect Mongolia’s rural countryside with Ulaanbaatar have provided new opportunities and access to thousands of people who otherwise would have remained isolated. However, for some people like [...]

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