The Ministry of Health and the Public Health Institute called for March 18th to be marked “Men`s Health Day” when holding a press conference with journalists on Monday.

Mongolian Armed Forces Day has been annually celebrated on March 18th. From now the day will be marked as a day to raise public awareness of the challenging issues that men now face.

The National Cancer Center of Mongolia conducted a free diagnosis for early detection of cancer among male staff and female staff member’s husbands last week.

But this initiative was just the beginning. The Ministry of Health has developed a strategy for Men`s health to conduct a case-controlled study of cancer throughout the year.

In Mongolia, 48.6 percent of the total population are men. The average life expectancy is 64.91, this is 9.4 years below the average life expectancy of a women living in Mongolia according to a study by the National Statistical Office of Mongolia. However the normal difference in life expectancy that exists in any countries between sexes is a gap of only four year. The Ministry of Health is calling to attention the 2.5 times higher difference in life expectancy gap between men and women in Mongolia.

Mongolia has started developing a strategy for Men`s health for the first time and is taking experts` considerations into the project.