By Bilguun Munkhtur
Co-Founder, Nomaducate
Youth Entrepreneur at LLDC3
Mongolia’s experience demonstrates the power of the internet and information technology to overcome a landlocked geography and erase physical boundaries to allow Mongolians to connect with the global marketplace.
Digital businesses are thriving in Mongolia and are creating more jobs now than ever. Smartphones and their apps are transforming everyday lives. Over 93% of Mongolia’s population of 3.5 million people now own and use a smartphone on a daily basis. Everything is rapidly digitalizing, from banking and finance to transportation services like taxis and rental scooters, to getting micro bank loans on the spot and even getting food delivered. There is an app for everything. There are also many domestic start-up incubator companies that invest in startups that show promise and growth potential.
Inspired by this, I decided to co-found “Nomaducate”, an online education platform which connects people for education partnerships. The name was inspired by the nomadic culture of Mongolia and the word education (nomad+education). The word ‘nomad’ has a connotation of moving from place to place, exactly as we do in search for higher education.
Bridging borders to connecting aspiring students with mentors.
Nomaducate is a website platform where graduates of top universities around the world connect with aspiring students to provide personal advice and mentorship on admission and general guidance for their future. It aims to help aspiring students reach their educative goals. This market is matched to current or graduate students interested in providing their mentorship and guidance for a fee to aspiring students. Still under development, the platform is being set up in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, but with an intended audience of aspiring students, current students, and alumni of top universities from around the world.
In Mongolia, there are a lot of agencies that help students to get admitted to schools abroad by giving them – often expensive – advice on the preparation of admission documents, study plan essays, and even interviews. I thought to myself, “I bet there are a lot of students who are unable to access these types of agency services or simply unable to afford them”. This was the genesis of Nomaducate - helping aspiring students to connect with people who have already experienced what they are aspiring to achieve. The platform aims to create mutually beneficial partnerships between aspiring students and mentors with a model that can be adopted to any country around the world. As long as there are universities and future students, our digital business will continue to exist.
Anything that needs to be done can be done through the internet.
As for making this idea come to life, there are no physical or digital limitations that is put on our company. Anything that needs to be done can be done through the internet and online collaborations with domestic as well as international consultants, including both individuals and specialized firms. If we can prove this business concept in Mongolia, we believe that we will be able to expand overseas to multiple other countries where people can take advantage of our platform to increase their odds of getting admitted to a school.
We strongly believe that this type of digital business can be achieved no matter the geographical challenges, such as being landlocked in Mongolia. Everything that we need can be done over the internet and even development of websites and apps can be outsourced to developers from other countries. From the vast steppes to the digital frontier, Mongolia is now more connected to the world than ever. The internet can truly erase physical boundaries.
Partnerships and support from external bodies can help. Networking opportunities with international similar minded businesspeople and gaining experience and insights is valuable. Partnerships that create investment opportunities would be the greatest asset and tool for entrepreneurs, like us, to grow and expand their business ideas into reality.
Whether it’s tech startups, online retail, or digital content, Nomaducate believes that the landlocked nature of Mongolia is no obstacle to innovation and reaching global success.
Bilguun Munkhtur is an entrepreneur living in Mongolia. Having spent half of his life living outside of his home country, in the USA and South Korea, he has a global perspective to how certain industries and businesses can work. As a graduate from Korea University, with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration and a Master’s Degree in International Studies, he has worked in multiple environments from small/medium enterprises to large corporations, as well as government owned enterprises and international development organizations. He lives with his wife and 3-year-old son with high hopes of making it as a young entrepreneur from Mongolia.
