As in the days of Genghis Khan, many Mongolians today still live in their traditional tents, travelling through the huge, largely untouched country on horseback with their livestock. They suffer temperatures of up to 40°C during the very short summer (June – September), while being exposed to up to -40°C in winter. And so they are increasingly thronging to the cities. The capital, Ulaanbaatar, alone is home to half of the entire population. This leads to severe problems such as unemployment, homelessness, high criminality and alcoholism.

While it was under Russian rule, entry to the country was practically impossible. Since the opening up of Mongolia, AVC has been working there – initially alone and then in cooperation with the partner organizations CLAIM and Asian Outreach as of 1999.

Development work 

Help for the homeless

AVC helps to fund two homeless centres in Ulaanbaatar. The people who are taken in there are unemployed and homeless, from broken families and without hope for the future. They are allowed to stay for a year at most, being prepared for reintegration into society through training in such vital areas as hygiene, health and social behaviour. Support is given in their job search and for their children to join the state schools.

Most of them come to a living faith in Jesus and, as a practical expression of this, families are reunited. Once their time in the centre is over, the families are allowed to keep their accommodation, the traditional ger, to help them start a new life. Further expansion of this project in the future is planned.