MNT 3.5 billion MNT spent to fight desertification

A center to fight desertification in Mongolia has opened in Rashaant soum in Bulgan aimag. Mongolia developed its first anti-desertification program in 1996, and updated it in 2003. The Government has spent MNT 3.5 billion on more than 240 projects – but with mixed results. The latest report says 70 percent of the land in Mongolia is either partly or entirely desert. Desertification is partly explained by changes in the climate. For example, it has been reported that the average temperature in Mongolia has risen in recent years. But experts say that is not the only reason for desertification. They say the environmental degradation caused by mining is also having an effect.