Country: Mongolia Source: International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies Please refer to the attached file. Description of the crisisThe Dzud, an ongoing cold wave in Mongolia, prompted the activation of the Emergency Operation Centre (EOC) on 8 December 2023. As of January 2024, 118 soums in 18 provinces were experiencing white dzud conditions, while 87 soums in 16 provinces were near white-dzud, and 27 soums in 7 provinces faced "iron" dzud conditions (see Figure 1 below). The extreme weather affected 185,937 herder households and by March 2024, over 4.7 million animals had died, representing seven percent of the national livestock. The dramatic livestock losses resulted in a 12 per cent drop in the sector’s GDP. This loss undermined food security by reducing the production of staple meat and dairy, driving up prices, and disrupting supply chains and educational access due to heavy snowfall. The combined effects of increased debt burdens, diminished purchasing power, and rising inflation1 , along with escalating costs for hay and fodder, have further exacerbated the hardships faced by vulnerable groups.As the situation evolved beyond the initial Dzud impacts, additional hazards compounded the crisis. By May 2024, the EOC had addressed rising flood risks from accumulated snowfall and livestock carcasses, while NAMEM warned of potential summer floods amid heavy rains2 , affecting over 1,300 people and killing 22,000 livestock. Wildfires in October 20243 , along with drought conditions and exceeded pasture capacities, further strained affected regions and intensified the challenges faced by Mongolia’s herder communities. As of 31 December 2024, periodic snow measurements indicate that over 60 per cent of Mongolia is covered in snow, with significant variations in depth across different regions (see Figure 2 below). In the mountainous areas, particularly in the western, northern, central, and eastern regions, snow depths range between 11–24 cm, while in some parts of the Gobi and steppe regions, the snow depth is between 1–10 cm. These conditions are illustrated in Figure 3, where darker blue shades represent areas with deeper snow cover, indicating regions at higher risk of severe winter impacts. The widespread snow accumulation raises concerns for livestock survival, access to pastures, and potential further deterioration of the Dzud situation.