They Are the Keepers: Supporting Nomadic Families in Mongolia

In northern Mongolia, families continue a traditional way of life — migrating with their herds across the vast plains. But many struggle unless they have their own livestock. In early May, Holt’s vision trip team of sponsors, donors and other Holt supporters traveled hours by bus and plane to present gifts of livestock to three of these families.

Erdene squeezes her eyes shut and laughs with delight as her sister grabs her from behind and hugs her close. It’s a cold day in early May on the steppes of the Mongolian plains where Erdene lives with her mom, dad and four older sisters, and her cheeks are flushed pink from an icy wind that’s rolling across the grasslands. A family of lambs and baby goats were recently born on her family’s farm, and are just small enough for Erdene to hold in her arms as she helps her mom bottle feed the new herd.

Five-year-old Erdene and her family live in Mongolia’s northernmost province, where herding families continue a traditional way of life — seasonally migrating with their cattle, sheep and goats across the vast plains. Life is hard on the land, not far from Siberia, and winters are especially harsh with temperatures that can dip to -60 degrees. Although the nomadic people of this region have existed here for generations and know how to survive the extreme climate, many live in poverty and struggle to provide enough food, warm clothing and other necessities for their children.

Four years ago, Erdene’s family was among the hundreds of families living in this rural province who could not earn enough to meet their basic needs. Her father worked as an assistant herdsman, helping a livestock owner tend his herds. But in this agricultural region of Mongolia where herding livestock is the primary occupation, families have very limited opportunities to earn a stable income unless they own their own herd. As an assistant herdsman, Erdene’s father earned less than $30/month — not nearly enough to support his five young daughters.

“The bitter cold and barren landscape of this beautiful but harsh region offer few opportunities for families to make a living,” explains Paul Kim, Holt’s director of programs in Mongolia and Korea. “While those with sufficient wealth can support an adequate lifestyle, the salary of a hired herder is only enough to purchase food, vital fuel for heating, and maybe just a little more for other needs. For these families, the wage they earn is about affording the basic necessities for their families’ month-to-month survival.”

How Sponsors and Donors Support Nomadic Families in Mongolia

In 2019, Holt’s team in Mongolia began working in this remote province to help care for the region’s most vulnerable children, including children with disabilities, children growing up in orphanages and children living in poverty with their families, including the children of assistant herdsmen. Erdene and her siblings were among over 80 children who Holt donors began to support through Holt’s family strengthening program. Holt provided emergency food for Erdene and her siblings. Erdene was also enrolled in Holt’s child sponsorship program, which provided ongoing support for her and her family.

Erdene’s family felt deep gratitude for the support of Holt sponsors and donors. But as traditional nomadic people who have chosen to stay and work the land like their families have for generations, Erdene’s parents are hard-working and skilled in raising livestock. Like many assistant herdsmen, they dreamt of owning their own herd, nourishing their children from what they produced, and living by their own means.

“If they could own some livestock, they would be able to get wool and cashmere during springtime,” explains our team in Mongolia. “And in summer, they would be able to get dairy products — and the children would benefit from the milk.”

In March 2021, their dreams were realized when Holt presented Erdene’s family with an incredible, donor-funded gift of hope — a gift that would empower Erdene’s parents to work toward stability and self-reliance, and ultimately meet all of their children’s needs. They gave the family a herd of 20 goats and 28 sheep.

Over the past four years, Erdene’s parents have nearly doubled the size of their herd and added cattle as well — bringing in considerable profits for their family. In that time, Erdene and her siblings have also grown healthier and stronger because of the nourishing milk and cheese they regularly have in their diet.

“I am very happy as a mother to see my children growing, thriving, healthy and happy … Life has changed and we are very, very happy,” Erdine’s mother shared with a visiting Holt team member as one of her daughters hugged her arm. “I would like to say thank you. Really, really thank you.”

Because of this heartfelt gift from Holt donors, Erdene and her family are thriving. But many more families in this region struggle to survive and continue a traditionally nomadic way of life without their own herds of livestock.

“In this region, the only way for a family to reach beyond poverty, and to be able to ensure their children a better future and independent lives, is to have and grow a herd of their own,” Paul says. “For these families, having their own herd is not about wealth, but in knowing that through their own hard work and the proper care of their herd that they can build something tangible that they can pass on to their children — enabling them to have a head start in building their own lives and futures.”

Holt Vision Trip Team Presents Livestock to Three Families

In early May of this year, a team of sponsors, donors and other Holt supporters traveled to Mongolia as part of our 2024 vision trip. They came to visit children and families in Holt programs and see with their own eyes the life-changing impact of their gifts. They held babies and played with children in Holt-supported orphanages. They visited the Red Stone School in Ulaanbaatar for children whose families live and work in a nearby garbage dump. They saw one of our newest programs for children living with disabilities in an underserved community. And they traveled hours by bus and plane to northern Khuvsgul province, where they visited Erdene and her family — and presented gifts of livestock to three additional families.

“All of the families have been waiting for four years for the opportunity to have their own herds,” explains Paul Kim, who led the vision trip team on their journey across Mongolia. “The families were selected based on need and their ability to sustain and grow their herds. Until now, they have all worked for other livestock owners as hired herdsmen.”

Batu and his wife, Enkhmaa, are one of the young herding couples who were presented with a gift of livestock during the vision trip in May. They are a family of six, with four children ranging in age from 5 to 15 years old. Although Enkhmaa had completed primary school — often the highest level of traditional classroom education herding families receive — few opportunities meant both she and Batu were only able to secure irregular, part‐time work in town. This made it challenging for them to meet their family’s needs, including providing enough food for their children and ensuring they could attend school regularly.

In the spring of 2017, Batu began assisting a rural herdsman family with calving, and eventually became an assistant herdsman himself. This transition allowed him to earn a living by raising livestock in the countryside instead of working lower-paying jobs in town. Since 2018, Batu has been raising rams and goats given to him by herder families. He owns a winter fence in the countryside where he lives with his family. But his monthly salary does not fully cover the family’s needs for school supplies, clothing and food. Like most nomadic families in this region, their children attend boarding school. But without uniforms, supplies and fees to stay in the dormitory, their children might have had to quit school early.

“I am very happy and proud that I gave birth to them. I love seeing them growing up happy and thriving. I really would like my kids to grow up healthy, not to see bad things — to see and to live in a brighter world.”

Enkhmaa, a mother whose family received the gift of livestock from Holt donors

“For a family of herders who survive by working for others, this often requires that both parents tend to the herds. Pasture sufficient to feed the herds necessitates moving from area to area, often days or more of travel away from their homes, for weeks at a time,” Paul says, explaining why children in this region must attend boarding school. “The sparse population means that schools are located far away — too far for families to be able to afford daily transportation — and beyond the means of children to travel on their own.”

As a result, many children remain at home while their parents tend to the herds, sometimes with no adults to care for them. For parents committed to educating their children — parents like Batu and Enkhmaa — sending their children to boarding school is the only option.

“But for families barely able to feed, house and clothe their children,” Paul says, “even the relatively modest cost of these schools requires sacrifice and hardship.”

When Holt’s team in Mongolia learned about this family, they immediately enrolled two of their children in Holt’s child sponsorship program. Sponsors ensured their children could continue attending school — providing basic supplies and helping to cover the cost of boarding school for the three oldest children. Their youngest daughter, Tuya, who is now 6, currently lives with her grandmother in town so that she can attend preschool. In the fall, she will start kindergarten.    

In a recent progress report for Tuya’s sponsor, her social worker shared that “during the weekends, her father comes to take her home riding a bicycle. She loves to cuddle with her mom and dad.” Tuya also loves to draw, dance and sing, watch cartoons — her favorite is “Masha and the Bear” — and although she is a bit shy, she like schools and has become friends with all of her classmates.

Although Tuya and her siblings have been able go to school with the monthly support of sponsors, and see their parents on weekends, a full herd of livestock would allow Enkhmaa and Batu to grow their income, become self-reliant — and most importantly, provide a better quality of life for their children. 

They Are the Few, They Are the Keepers

On the cold day in May when the vision trip team arrived to present them with the gift of livestock, Enkhmaa and Batu waited eagerly for their guests along with the other two families. For the presentation ceremony, they had all gathered at one of the family’s gers — a traditional round Mongolian home wrapped in insulating layers of felt made of sheep’s wool.

Although the team was late arriving, the families were very gracious about it and just happy and grateful to see the Holt team. “Enkhmaa was more reserved, but so kind and very humble,” shares one vision trip team member. “The children were shy at first but very playful. Their daughter played around and laughed with her dad a lot. Enkhmaa shared that their older son was back home taking care of the livestock — and that they have a baby on the way!”

“It is essential to support herder families. Why? Because this is a very unique way of life, a native way of life, and these few families are really the keeper of Mongolian nomad tradition. Thanks to them, our nomad lifestyle is alive and will be passed on to the next generation. Without them, we would not have it. So it’s very essential. Not only because this is nomad way of life, but because they are few and they are the keepers.”

Ariunbolor Davaatsogt, Holt Mongolia Social Worker

As all of the families and vision trip team huddled inside the ger, the wind and rain whipping against the sides, each family received a plaque of ownership and took turns expressing their gratitude for this life-changing gift. For the occasion, several of them wore traditional silk Mongolian dress in vibrant colors. With everyone gathered, the Holt Mongolia social worker who works with the local families answered questions and shared about the families’ unique way of life — emphasizing the importance of supporting traditional herding families.

“It is essential to support herder families. Why? Because this is a very unique way of life, a native way of life, and these few families are really the keeper of Mongolian nomad tradition,” the social worker, Ariunbolor Davaatsogt, shared. “Thanks to them, our nomad lifestyle is alive and will be passed on to the next generation. Without them, we would not have it. So it’s very essential. Not only because this is nomad way of life, but because they are few and they are the keepers.”

Over the past 25 years, more and more traditional nomadic families have migrated to Ulaanbaatar in search of other opportunities.

“Being a herder and looking after and tending to the livestock is very hard work,” explained Airunbolor, who grew up in Khuvsgul but now works for Holt Mongolia in Ulaanbaatar. “The young people give up because you really need to have this resilience and stamina and this really strong will to go through it. What happened starting from the early 2000s is that the young herdsmen families give up and moved to UB — Ulaanbaatar — city.”

But once they arrive in Ulaanbaatar, many struggle to find work and adjust to a new way of life. When families migrate from rural to urban areas, children are also at greater risk of trafficking, exploitation and domestic violence due to the tough existence many of these families face living in makeshift ger camps on the outskirts of the city.

And as Paul adds, the mass migration of nomad families from rural to urban areas impacts not just the families who leave — but also those left behind. 

“The traditional pastoral culture and lifestyle of Mongolia not only provided the people with the means to survival, but was the foundation of their families and their nomadic communities. … Traditions maintained strong family ties, and created communities where neighbors offered assistance without obligation and without being asked,” he explains. “But as urbanization began in Mongolia, the lure of greater opportunity began to rend families and nomadic communities apart.”

If they receive support to stay in Khuvsgul, however, nomadic families can continue their traditional way of life, rise above poverty and raise thriving children who can grow up safe and free in the beautiful plains of their homeland — a vision that three more families can now realize through the gift of livestock they received from Holt donors.

For these families, Paul says, this is what was most meaningful to them.

“They expressed their thanks, as they never imagined that this day would truly come, and that the impact of the gift is greatest when seen as how it will positively affect their children’s futures,” he says. “This is what was most meaningful, being given the ability to work hard to raise themselves out of poverty, and to be able to actually envision a brighter future for their children.”

Now, like Erdine’s family before them, these three families have what they need to grow their income, feed, clothe and educate their children, and follow in the path of generations of nomadic herding families before them — keeping alive the tradition and culture of this remote northern region of Mongolia, and providing a more hopeful future for their children.

As the day closed and their guests prepared to leave, Enkhmaa shared what brought her the greatest joy.

“I am very happy and proud that I gave birth to them,” Enkhmaa said of her children. “I love seeing them growing up happy and thriving. I really would like my kids to grow up healthy, not to see bad things — to see and to live in a brighter world.”