Unless Ulaanbaatar’s air pollution levels rapidly decrease in the coming years, the financial cost of treating diseases in children caused by air pollution will increase by 33 percent by 2025, costing an additional MNT 4.8 billion per annum to the public health system from 2025, reveals a new report commissioned by the Mongolian National Center for Public Health and UNICEF.

In last 10 years, incidences of respiratory diseases in Ulaanbaatar have increased dramatically. Cases of respiratory infections have nearly tripled and pneumonia is now the second leading cause of death for children under five years old. Children living in the highly polluted district of central Ulaanbaatar were found to have 40 per cent lower lung function than children living in a rural area.