Mongolia: helping herders stay informed
For Badam-Ochir and his wife Bolortuya, who make a living from herding goat and sheep in eastern Mongolia, knowing the weather forecast is a matter of survival. In the winter, the temperatures here can drop to minus 40 degrees – an extreme climate for which one needs to plan ahead, for their own family but also for their herd, which often roams far away in the steppe, and which they therefore need to bring back close when the weather threatens. Thanks to a disaster preparedness project funded by the EU, they now have the necessary information at their fingertips via an SMS service which provides them with a bi-weekly localised weather forecast, as well as information on snow depth and pasture degradation, helping them better manage their herd. “We are nomads, we change locations at least four times a year, explains Badam-Ochir. This service is extremely useful as it is accessible anywhere, anytime. We take real time decisions thanks to this”. Overall, the project will reach 6700 herders in Mongolia.
© 2018 European Union (photographer: Pierre Prakash)
Mongolia: helping herders stay informed
For Badam-Ochir and his wife Bolortuya, who make a living from herding goat and sheep in eastern Mongolia, knowing the weather forecast is a matter of survival. In the winter, the temperatures here can drop to minus 40 degrees – an extreme climate for which one needs to plan ahead, for their own family but also for their herd, which often roams far away in the steppe, and which they therefore need to bring back close when the weather threatens. Thanks to a disaster preparedness project funded by the EU, they now have the necessary information at their fingertips via an SMS service which provides them with a bi-weekly localised weather forecast, as well as information on snow depth and pasture degradation, helping them better manage their herd. “We are nomads, we change locations at least four times a year, explains Badam-Ochir. This service is extremely useful as it is accessible anywhere, anytime. We take real time decisions thanks to this”. Overall, the project will reach 6700 herders in Mongolia.
© 2018 European Union (photographer: Pierre Prakash)