Mr. Baasansuren DEMBERELYNAM from Mongolia
I am Demberelnyam BAASANSUREN, and I amfrom Mongolia, a land known for its wide steppes
and the Gobi Desert. After I completed myundergraduate degree in international relations, I
earned by certification to work for a governmentorganization by passing Mongolia's civil service
exam. I started my career as a specialist in chargeof foreign relations in the National Emergency
Management Agency (NEMA) of Mongolia, a key organization in the disastermanagement field. To simply describe my assignment, NEMA is charged withcoordinating the activities of different stakeholders who are involved in disaster
response, including non-governmental and governmental organizations, the private
sector, community groups, and international organizations. To effectively engage
international contributors in our major disaster response activities, we keep donors andinternational stakeholders updated with the latest disaster information and develop
contingency plans in cooperation with UN agencies. My main responsibility is to collectand upload information and assist with international projects in the field of disastermitigation, response, and recovery.
To strengthen the professional skills of our emergency personnel, it is essential toenable them to participate in international trainings and seminars such as Urban
Search and Rescue Training and Disaster Preparedness and Firefighting Training.
These types of trainings give them great opportunities to enhance their knowledge andthinking through comparative study and exposure to creative approaches to disastermanagement. Thus we, the foreign relation officers, seek out such opportunities for ourpersonnel to attend international trainings and seminars, or joint disaster
preparedness exercises or drills for emergency personnel. In 2010, NEMA sent a total of
165 high or mid-level emergency personnel to international trainings and joint exercises.
TheForeignRelations

Division

coordinates

allof

theadministrativeandcommunication details with the hosts.
As a representative of the younger generation of disaster management practitioners in
Mongolia, I have had the privilege of learning from distinguished experts from various
countries who are committed to the work of reducing potential disaster losses, andcreating safer and more peaceful living environments. Thus, I am highly satisfied withmy work and am dedicated to strengthening the disaster management capacity andinternational cooperation capabilities of my organization.
The geography of Mongolia is highly varied, with the Gobi Desert to the south and cold,
mountainous regions to the north and west. Much of Mongolia consists of steppes. Since
it is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and
the People's Republic of China to the south, east and west, we do not experience suchdisasters as tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, or lava and debris flow. Nevertheless,
Mongolia is prone to plenty of other types of natural disasters triggered by climatechange and global warming, such as desertification, dzud (severe winter disasters),
earthquakes, landslides, snow, dust and thunder storms, and flash floods, as well asmanmade disasters including forest and steppe fires, industrial accidents, and building
fires. Since no disaster is confined to the territory of only one state, it is important todevelop close cooperation in the field of disaster management between organizations at
the regional, national, and international level. Thus, I find the ADRC VisitingResearcher Program to be one of the best practical examples of disaster management
collaboration at the international level, specifically in the area of disaster mitigation. Itis a great opportunity for me to become familiar with the good practices and lessons
learned from previous major Japanese disasters that Mongolia has never experienced
before.
There is a popular quote that says, "To the world we may be just one person, but to one
person we can mean the world" (Brandi Snyder). We are all committed to strengthening
our disaster management capacity as well as protecting our population from all types ofnatural, biological and social threats, and we can achieve great things if we work
together.