From Policy to Practice: Mongolia’s Efforts to Build Inclusive Education for All Children

Mongolia has strong laws supporting inclusive education, but children with disabilities, especially girls still face barriers such as stigma, inaccessible schools, and limited teacher capacity. An ADB-supported project shows that combining policy reform, community awareness, teacher training, accessible infrastructure, and assistive technology can significantly improve enrollment and learning outcomes, though sustained effort is still needed.

Prepared by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in collaboration with Mongolia’s Ministry of Education, the Mongolian National University of Education, local education departments, and organizations of persons with disabilities, this brief examines how Mongolia is working to make its education system inclusive for children with disabilities. Although Mongolia has committed to international agreements such as the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and has passed numerous national laws, many children with disabilities still struggle to access quality education. The brief draws on research, household surveys, policy reviews, and lessons from the ADB-supported Supporting Inclusive Education in Mongolia project, implemented between 2020 and 2024 with funding from the Japan Fund for Prosperous and Resilient Asia and the Pacific.

Barriers Children with Disabilities Still Face

Mongolia has high overall school enrollment rates, but children with disabilities are consistently left behind. At the start of the project, 20 percent of people with disabilities had not completed primary education, compared to less than 4 percent of the general population. Barriers include inaccessible school buildings, poor transportation, lack of assistive devices, limited early identification of disabilities, and teachers who are not trained to support diverse learning needs. Social attitudes also play a major role. Girls with disabilities face particularly severe discrimination, often being kept at home due to fears of harassment or abuse, while boys with disabilities are more likely to drop out later because of bullying and negative attitudes from teachers.

Changing Attitudes and School Culture

The project recognized that laws alone cannot create inclusion without changing mindsets. It supported community awareness campaigns led by civil society groups and organizations of persons with disabilities, reaching more than 5,400 people. These efforts helped parents, teachers, and students better understand inclusive education and reduce bullying in schools. Multidisciplinary school support teams were also established, bringing together teachers, school leaders, social workers, health staff, and local officials. These teams coordinated learning support, worked with families, and helped schools adapt teaching methods. As a result, schools became more welcoming environments where children with disabilities felt more accepted and supported.

Bringing Children into Mainstream Schools

A major focus of the project was enrolling children who were out of school or placed in segregated special schools. Community coordinators identified more than 250 children with disabilities who were not attending school and worked closely with families to understand why. The project found that lack of awareness and fear were often bigger obstacles than transportation. Through parent outreach, teacher training, accessibility improvements, and limited transport support, 154 children with disabilities were enrolled in mainstream schools and kindergartens. The project also helped 52 children move from segregated special schools into regular classrooms, exceeding its original target. These transitions showed that inclusive education is possible when schools are prepared and families are supported, though enrollment remained lower for girls.

Policy Reform, Infrastructure, and Lasting Lessons

Alongside school-level work, the project supported national policy reform. Its research contributed to Mongolia’s 2023 Education Package Law, which officially adopts Universal Design for Learning and defines inclusive education as education for all children in their local schools. The project also strengthened disability- and gender-disaggregated data systems, helping inform the drafting of Mongolia’s Sign Language Bill, expected to be adopted in 2025. Physical accessibility was improved through ramps, accessible toilets, handrails, and braille signage in selected schools and kindergartens. More than 1,100 children received assistive devices such as hearing aids, braille materials, and communication tools, greatly improving class participation.

The brief concludes that inclusive education is not a one-time reform but a long-term process. Mongolia’s experience shows that real inclusion requires changing attitudes, supporting teachers and families, improving data and policy, and ensuring schools are physically and socially accessible. While progress has been made, continued effort is needed to ensure that children with disabilities, especially girls, are no longer left behind.