Mongolian Development Centre

What Mongolian Development Centre does

Mongolian Development Centre is a non-governmental organization headquartered in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, founded in 1993 by Swiss national Ramin Granfar and registered as an NGO in 1998. Its core mission is the moral and spiritual development of young children, operationalized primarily through the "Erdenesiin Urkhai" (Treasure Mine) Early Childhood Development program, which delivers character-based education targeting children aged 3-5, kindergarten teachers, and parents/caregivers. The organization operates through a training-of-trainers cascade model, equipping teachers and parents with curriculum content — original Mongolian songs, stories, and character lessons — and supports them to deliver that content in kindergartens, schools, and home settings.

The business model is grant-funded rather than commercial. Program delivery is financed through project-based grants from international partners, including the Badi Foundation of Macau and UNICEF, often implemented in collaboration with the National Center for Children, Child Rights Center, and the Mongolian Technical University. Content distribution combines in-person training sessions with a modest digital footprint on YouTube (@mdcmongolia), Facebook, and an institutional website. There is no proprietary technology platform, no software product, and no disclosed AI/ML capability; the competitive differentiation lies in three decades of accumulated content and relationships rather than in technology.

Name

Mongolian Development Centre

Legal name

Монголын Хөгжлийн Төв ТББ

Website

https://mdc.mn

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Mongolian Development Centre is a Ulaanbaatar-based NGO founded in 1993 that delivers the "Erdenesiin Urkhai" early childhood development program to kindergarten children, teachers, and parents across Mongolia, funded primarily through international grants and partnerships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Early Childhood Education Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Comprehensive ECE Curriculum Frameworks (Birth–5) (EDACAJAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Parenting Skills & Child Development Education (EDACALAA)

Keywords

• Early childhood development
• Teacher training programs
• Parent education services
• Character development curriculum
• Kindergarten education

Headquarters

HQ city

Ulaanbaatar

HQ country

Mongolia

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Grant and Project Funding: As an NGO established in 1993, the organization operates through externally funded projects and grants, including partnerships with international organizations such as the Badi Foundation from Macau and UN agencies for child rights work.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Mongolian Development Centre delivers the "Эрдэнэсийн уурхай" (Erdenesiin Urkhai / Treasure Mine) early childhood development program, a three-year curriculum for children aged 3-5 that integrates moral character, mathematics, science, and language education. The organization complements this core program with kindergarten teacher training, parent education workshops ("Хүүхдээ хүмүүнжүүлэн төлөвшүүлэхүй"), and supplementary digital content distributed via a YouTube channel and online knowledge database.

Product overview

Mongolian Development Centre operates as a unified NGO offering early childhood development programs and educational services. The core product is the 'Эрдэнэсийн уурхай' (Treasure Mine) comprehensive curriculum for children ages 3-5, complemented by teacher training, parent education programs, and a YouTube channel for supplementary educational content. The organization functions as a program-based NGO rather than a technology platform, providing face-to-face educational services focused on moral character development, cognitive skills, and ethics education.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Эрдэнэсийн уурхай (Erdenesiin Urkhai / Treasure Mine): Early childhood development program for children ages 3-5, focusing on moral character development, cognitive skills, and service culture. Includes curriculum for teachers, parents, and caregivers.

Products and services

• Эрдэнэсийн уурхай (Erdenesiin Urkhai / Treasure Mine) Early Childhood Development Program A three-year comprehensive early childhood development curriculum for children aged 3-5 that focuses on moral character development, scientific awareness, mathematics, language skills, and ethical competencies, based on the philosophy that 'A person is a priceless treasure mine, and only education can unlock their rich treasures.' The program is delivered through partner kindergartens and is the foundational product of the organization.
• Kindergarten Teacher Training Program Training program equipping kindergarten teachers with knowledge and skills for developing children's character, focusing on moral competencies that form the foundation of service culture for young children. Trained teachers subsequently deliver the Treasure Mine curriculum and conduct parent training sessions.
• Parent Training Program ("Хүүхдээ хүмүүнжүүлэн төлөвшүүлэхүй") Training program for parents on 'Humanizing and Character-Building of Children' (Хүүхдээ хүмүүнжүүлэн төлөвшүүлэхүй) designed to help parents analyze family environments and learn innovative methods for working with contemporary children, delivered by trained kindergarten teachers.
• Knowledge Database (Мэдлэгийн санд) Online knowledge resource providing educational materials, articles, and resources for parents, teachers, and caregivers on early childhood development and education, drawing on the organization's library of songs, stories, and educational content developed over three decades.

Quantifiable outcome

• In November 2024, trained teachers conducted parent training sessions for children's families

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Badi Foundation (Бади сан) - MacaucoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Badi Foundation from Macau developed the 'Erdene's Mine' (Эрдэнэсийн уурхай) early childhood development program based on the experiences of United Nations schools and kindergarten teachers. This foundation provided the foundational curriculum that was then adapted for Mongolian conditions since 2000.
• UNICEF (Нэгдсэн Үндэстний Байгууллагын Хүүхдийн сан)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated with UNICEF to promote and raise awareness of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, becoming one of the first organizations in Mongolia to do so. This partnership established the foundation's focus on children's rights and welfare.
• National Center for Children (Хүүхдийн төлөө Үндэсний Төв)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with the National Center for Children to conduct child rights protection activities and awareness campaigns in Mongolia.
• Child Rights Center (Хүүхдийн эрхийн төв)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated with the Child Rights Center on activities to promote and protect children's rights, including awareness campaigns about the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
• Technical University (Техникийн Их Сургууль)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInitially operated as a research center under the Technical University (Technical Institute of Mongolia), expanding its activities before officially registering as an NGO in 1998.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Sesame Workshop: Global early childhood development organization producing curriculum, training, and multimedia content for young children; comparable to MDC's integrated ECE curriculum-plus-content approach but at vastly larger scale.
• Aga Khan Foundation: Operates early childhood and primary education programs across Central/South Asia and East Africa with an explicit moral/ethical and Ismaili spiritual framework, closely analogous to MDC's Bahá'í-rooted moral ECE positioning.
• Room to Read: International education NGO delivering literacy and life-skills programs in low-income countries with teacher training and parent engagement components, structurally similar to MDC's training-of-trainers delivery model.
• Badi Foundation: Macau-based foundation that developed the 'Erdenesiin Urkhai' curriculum that MDC adapted; shares the same moral/spiritual early childhood education philosophy and serves as MDC's core programmatic partner.

Broad incumbents

• World Vision International: Global child-focused humanitarian organization with early childhood programming, teacher training, and parent engagement work in Mongolia and similar contexts; broader portfolio but overlapping target beneficiaries.
• ChildFund International: International child-development NGO operating in multiple Asian and African countries with sponsorship-funded early childhood and family programs; comparable NGO funding model and child-development focus.
• Save the Children: Large international NGO with a substantial early childhood development portfolio and deep UNICEF/government partnerships; comparable broad child-welfare scope but operates at global scale well beyond MDC's single-country footprint.
• Teach For All: Global network of independent organizations recruiting and training teachers/educators for underserved communities; shares MDC's training-led approach to educational outcomes but focused on leadership development at scale.
• BRAC: One of the world's largest development NGOs operating early childhood and pre-primary programs across multiple developing countries; comparable training-of-trainers community delivery model in emerging markets.

Others

• UNICEF Mongolia: Active partner of MDC on child rights advocacy and ECE policy; comparable in serving Mongolian children and families but as a UN agency rather than an operating NGO, and acts more as a funder/convener than a direct program deliverer.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@mdcmongolia
• Facebookfacebook.com/MongolianYouthDevelopmentCenter
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mongolian-youth-development-center

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Mongolian Development Centre