Geographical Settings:

The geographic settings, that is, the location, climate, and topography of Mongolia are such that the country is a landlocked one. Its situated in Northern Asia and strategically located between China and Russia. The terrain is one of mountains and rolling plateaus, with a high degree of relief. In general, the land slopes from the high Altay Mountains of the west and the north to plains and depressions in the east and the south. Mongolia is the world's 19th-largest country. The geography of Mongolia is diverse. It has the Gobi Desert to the south and cold and mountainous regions to the north and west. A good deal of Mongolia consists of steppes. Most of the country is hot in the summer and extremely cold in the winter. For instance, January averages falls as low as 30 C (22 F). Mongolia has a severe continental climate with long, cold winters and short summers. During this, most of the countrys annual rainfall decreases. In other words, the country is high, cold, and windy.

Social Institutions:
Family The social institutions, such as, the family, dynamics of the family, female/male roles can be described as follows: Many Mongolians do not value their complex extended families. However, the more intimate intermediate family is considered sacred, and is valued greatly. A Mongolian family generally consists of a husband, a wife, and their young children. The sons move out of their parents after marrying. However, Nomadic families share a close bond because they always travel together, and live in the same yurt, with children sleeping on one side, and the parents on the other. There is a high birthrate in Mongolia, and families tend to have many children. Wedding ceremonies of the country traditionally include the hand-over of a new yurt (ger) to the marrying couple. Family law in Mongolia provides for marriages based on free consent. In addition, the law establishes 18 years as the minimum age for males and females. Besides, forced marriage is a crime under the Criminal Code. Mongolias 1992 Family Law provides for equal parental authority and spousal rights. In practice, the responsibility of family and childcare falls almost exclusively on women. Growing rural to urban migration has also led to a considerable raise in the number of female-headed households in urban areas of Mongolia. There has been a shift in attitudes towards the social institution of the family amongst women.

Education:
The Role of Education in SocietyEducation has always been very important to the Mongolian people. They have made it their priority to educate their children. The primary, secondary, and higher education systems of this country are welldeveloped and well-organizes. The Mongolian government made a lot of changes to their educational mandates and declared that all children must complete eight years of schooling, and that English must be taught at all schools. In university of Mongolia, men and women can study science, English, math and other subjects. Mongolia has an extensive, state-financed pre-school education system. Currently there only exist kindergartens that enroll children over the age of 3. There are also some privately run nursery schools and kindergartens. Many

of these offer language training, for example, Russian. The Primary and secondary education system included four years of compulsory schooling followed by a further four years of compulsory lowersecondary education. There were then two years of upper-secondary non-compulsory education that either have a vocational, technical, or general education focus. Mongolia's school system was previously based on the ten-year school similar to many post-socialist countries. However, it has been moving towards eleven years of education. The official school entrance age has been lowered to six starting 2008. There are several private secondary schools that have instruction in English and Mongolian, and just a few that have Englishonly instruction. There has been noteworthy growth in the higher education system of Mongolia to this day. There are many universities in this country. Literacy Rates The literacy rate in Mongolia is rather impressive. The country has a high literacy rate which is consistently rated around 98%. This is a high figure for a country that is often rated as one of the poorest in Asia. Mongolia has benefited from compulsory primary education under the communist regime in the 20th century, continuing in similar form today. The Mongolian government's non-formal distance education programs also provide large scopes for citizens to learn to read and write.

Political System:
The Political System of Mongolia, that is, the political structure, political parties, stability of government, special taxes, role of local government, etc. of the country are as follows. The framework of Mongolian Politics is that of a semi-presidential representative democratic republic, and of a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and parliament. The Judiciary is autonomous of the executive and the legislature. Political parties of Mongolia include Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party, Motherland Democratic Coalition, Democratic Party, Motherland Party, Civic Will Party, Independents, Republican Party, Mongolian People's Party (MPP), and Civil Will-Green Party (CWGP). After some instability during the first two decades of communist rule in Mongolia, there was no significant popular unrest until December 1989. Collectivization of animal husbandry, introduction of agriculture, and the extension of fixed abodes were all carried out without observable popular opposition. The Government of Mongolia offers special tax exemption equaling up to 10 percent of the total investment if offered for construction of high-rated hotels and tourist complexes. Standards and regulations are largely non-restrictive, with no complicated layers of bureaucracy issuing permission and exercising control. The legislative division, the State Great Khural, has one chamber with 76 seats and is chaired by the speaker of the house. It elects its members every four years by general elections. The State Great Khural is powerful in the Mongolian government with the president being largely symbolic and the prime minister being chosen by the parliament from among its own membership.

Legal System:
The legal system of Mongolia is such that the new constitution empowered a General Council of Courts (GCC) to select all judges and protect their rights. The Supreme Court is the highest judicial body. Justices are nominated by the GCC and confirmed by the SGKh and president. The court is constitutionally empowered to examine all lower court decisions upon appeal and provide official interpretations on all laws except the constitution. However this excludes specialized court rulings In addition, specialized civil, criminal, and administrative courts exist at all levels and are not subject to Supreme Court supervision. Local authorities, that is, district and city governors, make sure that these courts

abide by presidential decrees and SGKh decisions. At the top of the judicial system is the Constitutional Court of Mongolia. This consists of nine members, including a chairman, appointed for 6-year terms, whose jurisdiction extends solely over the interpretation of the constitution.