Dzud and the industrialization of pastoralism in socialist Mongolia

Abstract

This study investigates the relationship between the socialist industrialization of pastoralism in Mongolia and the government’s perception of severe winter disasters (dzud), as well as the countermeasures taken against them. It aims to do so by focusing on pastoral production and dzud’s impact under pastoral cooperatives (negdel). During the collective period from the late 1950s to the early 1990s, the government regarded dzud as the greatest threat to the livestock sector and explored ways to prevent and mitigate the ensuing damage. In theory, public regulation and support for dzud prevention and mitigation could decrease the frequency and severity of a large-scale dzud that may affect the entire country. However, dzud occurred occasionally at the province (aimag) or district (sum) level and had a serious impact on pastoral production in rural areas. In addition to the positive aspects of local society and larger structures, such as rescue and recovery, there was also a negative side to the industrialization of pastoralism, such as decreased resilience to dzud damage. Along with the expansion of pastoral production for domestic and foreign urban consumers, the consistent demand for individuals and pastoral cooperatives to achieve strict production quotas, regardless of any conditions, has exacerbated the damage from dzud. That is, the slump in rural pastoral production during the collective period may have been caused by the interaction between the damage from dzud and the problems concerning the labor production system that was revised in response to the challenges of industrialization under pastoral cooperatives.

Keywords

• pastoralism
• disaster
• socialist industrialization
• rural–urban relationship
• mongolia