Becoming an immigrant in another country or taking up short or long-term residence abroad has become a common phenomenon not only in Mongolia but also globally. Reports say that 3 million Venezuelans, which is 10 per cent of the population, have left the country, and another 2 million are expected to follow suit next year. Overall, migration of people happens for many reasons, including economic, political, and individual preference. In a democratic country, no one can force this movement to stop. Today Mongolia faces a challenge to manage the movement of its people wisely.
Key reasons for big migration
Mongolia has a total of 3.2 million people, and 4.5 per cent are living abroad. According to a 2017 report produced by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 144,566 Mongolians are living in 67 countries. This number equals the combined population of Bayankhongor and Bulgan aimags. If we break down those who are residing internationally, 23,990 people are under the age of 18, 25,986 are students who are older than 18, and 26,697 are working with the employment permits. A total of 490 people preferred not to take up Mongolian residence in 2018.
It is widely reported in the media that people are increasingly living abroad because of employment opportunities. However, the real causes need to be analysed carefully.
The biggest reason is connected with our economy. People are unable to find a job that can sustain their livelihood. Even if people want to do their own business, there is not a fully formed and adequate environment for entrepreneuralism. Due to corruption within the state and government, it is impossible to compete on a level playing field. There is too much pressure from taxes and the high interest rates on loans. Mongolbank reports that the average interest rate on personal loans provided by banks stood at 18 per cent per annum in 2018, and 15.5 per cent per annum for business loans. In Mongolia, you have start paying taxes as soon as you start your business. There isn’t any tax exemption period as is offered in other countries. Meanwhile, the lawmakers have been stealing from the funds dedicated to supporting small and medium entreprises. After all, who can compete with a company owned by the minister who looks after the whole sector?
The next biggest reason relates to social matters. People are poor because they don’t have jobs, and they are angry because they are poor. Over time the mayors of Ulaanbaatar have divided up the public land in the capital city amongst themselves, which has now created the massive traffic jams that are preventing advancements in society. Half of our population reside in Ulaanbaatar, but the city air has become so polluted that the car in front of you cannot be visible in daylight. Thousands of children are dying because of the smog. Traffic jams, polluted air, and unfairness in society have skyrocketed people’s frustration. As a result, people’s faith in the future has fallen to the floor. The lack of justice in our society means people are more willing to do anything that may make them wealthy quickly. The majority of our people increasingly want to go abroad. Half of the 46,000 Mongolians who are living in South Korea are there illegally, and half of them are looking for work.
The third reason is a combination of education opportunities, health services, and tourism. Also, the number of people who are married with foreign nationals is rising.
Consequences
In Mongolia, almost every household has someone who is working abroad and sending money. A World Bank report says that, while 266 million USD was transferred to Mongolia from abroad in 2010, the amount increased to 332 million USD (2.7 per cent of GDP) in 2018. It is said that people do hard labour in South Korea for two months and make as much as their annual income in Mongolia. Today, ordinary people are spending the hard-earned money their family members sent, while the authorities lavishly spend taxpayers’ money.
Due to this big migration, Mongolia is exporting its capable, resilient, energetic, and younger part of the workforce. As a result, we are seeing some negative social consequences in the increasing number of ‘half-families’. Children are growing up without the presence of one of their parents, while the other parent is living their life on their own in another country. The people who are working abroad are either those who form the middle class or the younger generation who are at the peak of their productivity and value generation. At this rate, Mongolia could risk facing a labour shortage in the future. The only people who would be left in Mongolia could be a small number of extremely wealthy families and those who are extremely poor.
Big migration also has a positive side. Mongolians are receiving education, learning other languages and cultures, and mastering know-how, which is an intangible investment. It can also be argued that the people who are living abroad are lessening the pressure on public hospitals, schools, and transportation in Mongolia to a degree.
Therefore, we need to carefully analyse migration, take into account both negative and positive consequences, and manage it wisely with a long-term vision.
Wise policy
Some people are directly rebuking and blaming those who are living in another country or have emigrated abroad. Instead we should strive towards understanding them, and the government should study the causes and find a long-term solution.
It is time to start effectively managing the positive and negative impacts of migration, take better advantage of the positives, and conduct a policy that is aimed at attracting, rather than pushing away, those who are living abroad. This can be managed as part of the third neighbour policy, and we could start allowing Mongolians to have dual citizenship with those countries.
The next critical step would focus on soft power. Being a Mongolian means speaking fluent Mongolian first and foremost. We need to provide every support available to help Mongolian children abroad to learn their mother tongue. Parents should make it a habit to converse, listen, and read in Mongolian at home. We should always remember that the children today will become competitive in the future by learning to speak two languages fluently. It should be a focus area for the embassies and consular offices in those countries where there is a large number of Mongolians.
There are two examples of previous attempts to bring Mongolians back from abroad. One is the Beehive program implemented by Su. Batbold’s cabinet in 2011, and the other is the Global Mongolians program initiated by Ch. Saikhanbileg’s government in 2016. However, these programs couldn’t offer more than a few positions in the government. They didn’t offer any direction or opportunity in doing business, with zero support on tax policy. Therefore, not a lot of people came back, and some of those who did have left Mongolia again.
Under the current circumstances, we would find more success by taking smaller steps that would create faith and belief, as opposed to implementing large programs or wide-ranging policies. For example, if the government is purposefully sending people abroad for upskilling, they should be thinking about what job opportunities would be available when those people come back. It means giving people who went to Japan an opportunity to obtain a professional qualification there, and planning on how they can apply what they learned when they return home.
Also, we see a lot of positive stories in the media about successful Mongolians who are working abroad. We need more coverage on how the Mongolians who returned home are leading a successful career.
2019.01.30
Trans. by B.Amar
2019.01.30