Elbegdorj Tsakhia, President of Mongolia


A call for a change to revere the dignity and freedom of a Mongolian, of the Mongolian people has been a life-long commitment of President Elbegdorj.

Born on March 30, 1963, as the youngest of eight sons of a herders’ family in Zereg soum of Khovd province, President Elbegdorj completed his primary and secondary education in his native province. In early 80s the Tsakhia family moved to Erdenet, the third largest city of Mongolia, where President Elbegdorj attended high school. Upon graduation, President Elbegdorj joined the Erdenet Copper Mine as a laborer and material mover in one of the mine’s workshops until he was drafted into the People’s Army in 1982. In the army President Elbegdorj headed the Revolutionary Youth League, which, in fact, was the first formal political entity for him to lead.

The Army was a store of food for thought. Excellence and diligence in the Army service earned President Elbegdorj a possibility to study journalism, military science and political theory in the Institute of Military and Political Science in L’vov, Ukraine. Five years in the USSR left indelible imprints in the mind of a young student. Here he first heard of Perestroika and Glasnost, first shared the spirit of freer and more liberal values openly, and here he first drafted a free newspaper in a student community. Although a part of the USSR, this westernmost city at the border with Poland was already being influenced by western thought.

After graduation from the Institute in 1988, President Elbegdorj returned to Mongolia and became a staff reporter for the Army newspaper “Ulaan Od” (“Red Star”). At the same time he headed the Army Literature Unit. His articles, journalistic essays and remarks revealed and harshly criticized the brutalities associated with “year difference” or seniority among privates in the Mongolian Army. He was determined in his fight to safeguard lives and health of Mongolian soldiers. Yet the struggle was not confined to soldiers only. It turned into a struggle for democracy, human dignity and social prosperity.

In 1989 together with the friends of common beliefs and values and despite strong pressures and constant watch of communist rulers, President Elbegdorj established the Mongolian Democratic Union, the very first public organization to embrace democratic values and ignite democratic transformations in the society at large. He opened the first ever pro-democracy demonstration on December 10, 1989. In early 1990s he rallied and traveled through Mongolia’s vast territory advocating democracy and calling for greater freedom in political, economic and social life which shattered the legacy of the country’s longstanding harsh system at once.

The struggle for democracy and human rights, started with the few young men, evolved as a major societal revolution leading to a total replacement of the political order of this country in the very heart of the Asian continent. Mongolia stood up as a fresh, bold, determined and diligent democracy. This was truly a phenomenon for a time when communism was still intact in the neighboring USSR and China.

Elected to the People’s Ikh Hural (Congress) and the Baga Hural (first permanent Parliament) of Mongolia in the 1990, President Elbegdorj was one of the authors of Mongolia’s new Constitution adopted in January, 1992. The Constitution, embodying the core values and beliefs of the Mongolian people, has become the unshattered guarantee of the choice of the Mongolian people, freedom and justice.

President Elbegdorj’s service to the nation in 1990-2008, twice as the Prime Minister (1998, 2004-2006), the vice Speaker of the Parliament (1996-1998), the majority leader of the Parliament (1996-2000) and four times as the Member of the Parliament (1990, 1992, 1996 and 2008), is a path of a builder, leader and consolidator of the powerhouse of democracy and market economy.

While firmly advancing Mongolia’s political reform agenda, President Elbegdorj was a key mover of the major economic reforms – economic liberalization policies, privatization, tax reforms, administrative overhaul, combating corruption, and a host of other robust reform initiatives and programs were carried out under his leadership.

Human dignity, clean governance and free media have been dear to the heart of President Elbegdorj. He established and has supported a host of organizations and institutions in the edifice of Mongolian democracy, without which human rights and liberties, and social justice are inconceivable. The President works to exterminate any forms of corrupt practices, and has led Mongolia to join the global anti-corruption efforts.

The Harvard University graduate President Elbegdorj and the First Lady Khajidsuren Bolormaa are happy parents of five – four boys and a tender girl. President Elbegdorj and First Lady Bolormaa are foster parents to up to several dozens of children who were deprived of parental care and suffered from hardships of life.

President Elbegdorj Tsakhia was elected the President of Mongolia on May 24, 2009 and sworn in on June 18, 2009.