After my unsuccessful trip to Dorngobi, trips to Umnogobi and Arkhangai have got my work back on track. The aim of each trip was the same: to work with regional government and tourism businesses to improve tourism quality and marketing.
The similarities and differences between local government in Mongolia and England are fascinating. Certaily in England two day workshops do not end with gifts of fermented camel's milk from the participants and a picnic of boiled sheeps head as a delicacy to be washed down with vodka in the countryside with lammergeiers flying overhead.
The similarities are just as obvious. The imposing aimag centres are reminiscent of the Victorian town halls of northeren england, and a similar statement of civic pride. Like in England there seens considerable vataiation in the competency of different regional governments. The staff in Umnogobi were committed to improvement, eager to learn and making progress. In Arkhangai local politics seemed more important with tensions between government and entrepreneurs and suggestions of corruption.
