Faces of UNICEF: Ulziisaikhan Sereeter, Early Childhood Development Officer at UNICEF Mongolia

Ulziisaikhan Sereeter, Early Childhood Development Officer at UNICEF Mongolia.
©UNICEFMongolia/2018/Sabina Netrvalova

What do you do in UNICEF Mongolia?

I work as an Early Childhood Development Officer and I oversee young children’s issues. I mostly focus on young children aged 0 - 5. For the age 0 - 2, I cooperate with other sectors like health, nutrition, and child protection as part of the integrated Early Childhood Development (ECD) program. For the age 2 - 5, I usually work with kindergartens and preschool education services.

Making early learning more accessible with ger kindergartens

Thanks to ger kindergarten, additional 20 children can access early childhood education.
©UNICEFMongolia/2018/Sabina Netrvalova

The kindergarten No. 189 in Ulaanbaatar’s Khan-Uul district is buzzing with noises. In the ger classroom, using the traditional Mongolian tent-like structure, children are running around, playing or singing. Two teachers taking care of them – Mrs. Amgalan and her assistant – certainly have their hands full.

The ger classroom was opened in February 2018 because of the insufficient capacity of the kindergarten’s main building. Thanks to the two connected gers, additional 20 children can now access early childhood education.

Chance of a better future with ger kindergartens

Minjinsor at the entrance of her ger kindergarten.
©UNICEFMongolia/2018/Sabina Netrvalova

“When I’m at kindergarten, I like to sing and play with Barbie dolls. I also like to play with all my friends,” says 5-year-old Minjinsor. She has a shy smile and short hair, newly cut during the Mongolian traditional hair-cutting ceremony.

Minjinsor is one of 15 children who left their overcrowded classroom in the main building of Kindergarten No. 8 in Ulaanbaatar’s Bayanzurkh district, and moved to a new ger classroom. Built in the typical Mongolian tent-like style, it is more spacious so the children can play more freely, and smaller numbers mean they can also enjoy the full attention of their teachers.

No more mold on walls: New bathrooms for kindergartens No. 122

The new sinks at kindergarten No. 122 are more accessible for children.
©UNICEFMongolia/2018/Mungunkhishig Batbaatar 

The brand-new toilets in kindergarten No. 122 in Bayanzurkh district of Ulaanbaatar city are sparkling clean. The bathrooms look bigger now and the sinks are more accessible for children. With over 880 pupils, the kindergarten’s bathroom facilities were in desperate need of renovations.

#EveryChildALIVE: Uuriintsolmon from Murun, Khuvsgul province, Mongolia

©UNICEF/UN0204329

Uuriintsolmon from Mongolia was born healthy and, unlike her older sister, remained in good health after her birth. Thanks to the home-care training received with the support of UNICEF, her mother did not make the same mistakes: Her sister had jaundice as a baby – her mother thought she was going to die. She also had a rash and small cuts on her arm because her mother did not bathe her frequently, and she suffered from constant colds because the house was not ventilated. Thanks to the nutrition training, Uuriintsolmon's milk is healthier (Mongolians believe meat, bread and cookies stimulate breastmilk production, while vegetables are better.) Her mother, Bayarmaa Erdenejargal,30, and her father, Nyambat 26, live in Murun city.

Learning at home

“The name Amina comes from an ancient Arabic word which means honest and helpful”, says mother Maral Khuandag.
© UNICEF Mongolia/2017/ Mungunkhishig Batbaatar

“When I grow up, I’m going to have three jobs – a policewoman, a doctor and a teacher!” says 5-year-old Amina. This ambitious little girl, from a Kazakh ethnic minority family, lives with her parents, brother and sister in Khan-Uul district of Ulaanbaatar, the nation’s capital. In the same breath, she adds, “But I might become an artist because I learned how to sing and draw from the teacher on the TV kindergarten.” Amina, along with more than 2,000 other preschool children, has been following the UNICEF-supported home-based, distance learning programme aired on Mongolian National Broadcaster (MNB), the country’s biggest TV channel. The video lessons are supplemented by a workbook for children and a guidebook for parents, as well as regular counseling and monitoring from local education specialists.

When there is a will, there is a way: Investing in early childhood development (ECD) in Nalaikh, Ulaanbaatar

Uranbileg and her favorite Teddy bear
©UNICEFMongolia/2016/Mungunkhishig Batbaatar

“I want to be a doctor when I grow up so that I can heal others,” says 5-year-old Uranbileg, also known as Urnaa. She lives in Nalaikh, a peri-urban district in the outskirts of Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. Her bright, intelligent smile belies the chronicle of her past pain and doubt. Having been born with bilateral orofacial clefts, her parents wondered if her little daughter would have a normal life in the future.

Гэрээр суралцахуй

Хөгжилтэй, хөөртэй Анунгоо охин шүлгээ уншиж дуусаад

©НҮБХС Монгол Улс/2016/Энхзул Алтангэрэл

       Хөгжилтэй бяцхан охин Анунгоо (Ану) 5 настай бөгөөд тааралдсан хэн бүхэнд дуу  дуулж, шүлэг уншиж өгөх дуртай. "Би олон шүлэг мэднэ. Та нэгийг нь сонсох уу? Миний хамгийн дуртай шүлэг “Намар” хэмээн Ану охин баясгалантайгаар хэлээд, намар цагийн байгалийн үзэсгэлэн төгс байдлын тухай шүлэг уншив. Тэрээр саяхан үйл ажиллагаа явуулж эхэлсэн Өрхөд суурилсан зайн сургалтын хөтөлбөрт оролцож эхлээд, хэдхэн сарын дотор энэ бүхнийг сурчээ.

Ану охин эцэг эх, охин дүүгийн хамт Налайх дүүрэгт амьдардаг. Ану охины ээж Оюунболор гэртээ сууж, хоёр охиноо асардаг, харин аав нь аль олдсон ажлаа хийх бөгөөд хааяа нүүрсний бичил уурхайд ажилладаг. Налайх дүүрэг нь тав хүртэлх насны 4100 гаруй хүүхэдтэй ч зөвхөн долоон цэцэрлэг байдаг тул их ачаалалтай ажилладаг. Иймд олон хүүхэд сургуулийн өмнөх боловсрол, бага насны хүүхдийн хөгжлийн хөтөлбөрт хамрагдаж чаддаггүй бөгөөд Ану охин тэдний нэг нь байсан юм.

Learning at home

Cheerful and happy Anungoo, after she read her favorite poem

©UNICEF Mongolia/2016/Enkhzul Altangerel

5 year-old Anungoo (Anu) is a cheerful little girl, who loves to sing and recite poems for anyone she meets. 

“I know a lot of poems. Do you want to hear one? My favorite poem is the Fall” says Anu enthusiastically, and goes on to recite a poem about beauty of nature in fall. She learned all these just in the past few months by attending recently launched home-based distance learning program.

Mobile kindergartens – best learning place for herders’ children

Otgonsuren drawing with colored pencils
©UNICEF Mongolia/2015/Tsendsuren Tumee

“My favorite toy is a car!” cheerfully says 4 year-old Otgonsuren.  “We have so many toys to play with, but I like painting and drawing the most”. Taking a pencil from stack of colored pencils, he starts drawing. Otgonsuren started kindergarten only this summer, and he has been enjoying the new experience. “I really like my kindergarten” he says.

Making all kindergartens child friendly

Bat-Erdene listening intently ©UNICEF/Mongolia/2015/Altangerel Sandag

Bat-Erdene stares at the piece of paper, with a look of intense concentration. He is drawing his favourite character, spider-man. Before beginning the drawing he debated with his kindergarten teacher how much paper he needed to draw spider-man. He wanted a bigger piece of paper in the room, instead they compromised on a smaller piece.