The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) continues its relief efforts in Mongolia, providing food and other necessities to thousands affected by the severe snowfall in large areas of Mongolia that has caused the death of more than one million livestock.  (See ANN Bulletin March 28, 2000.)

Relief assistance will soon begin in Zavkhan, the second most affected province in Mongolia, providing food and other relief supplies. A portion of the supplies is being provided through a recent grant from the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). ADRA recently finished the distribution of supplementary food rations to 630 families (approximately 3,780 people) in the Uvs province. The rations included flour, rice, powdered milk, cooking oil, hand soap, toothpaste, and laundry detergent.

“We had each county select 50 to 60 of their most needy families, and then we trucked the supplies out to the communities where the local governors helped organize the distribution to the selected families,” explains Llewellyn Juby, ADRA Mongolia country director. “We have so many stories to tell of great joy and relief brought to so many people.”

ADRA distributed medicine to the hospitals and clinics that serve the affected communities and was instrumental in evacuating some of the patients who needed extensive hospital care to the provincial capital. ADRA Mongolia’s physician provided in-home care to 183 patients. ADRA also distributed necessary supplies to local veterinary offices to assist in saving as many animals as possible.