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Mongolia ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in 2009 and has strengthened measures to guarantee the rights of persons with disabilities and promote their social participation. To realise them, the government developed legal systems, including the Law on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in Mongolia promulgated in 2016, which stipulates the rights of persons with disabilities. In 2017, the promotion of employment for persons with disabilities was set as a national goal. Aiming for more solid and continuous development, the Japanese technical cooperation "Project for Promoting Employment of Persons with Disabilities in Mongolia" has been implemented since 2021.

In this column, the project visits Mongolian companies promoting the employment of persons with disabilities, interviews the people concerned multilaterally and considers the realisation of employment that brings happiness to both persons with disabilities and the companies.

[CASE 5] Khaan Bank supports people's lives financially
"Human Resource Department takes the lead in understanding disability and passing it across the bank."

The Gan-Ulziis consulting Ankhchimeg who is with a lower limb problem (left) about financing
The couple, who run a cashmere factory on the outskirts of Ulaanbaatar, fully trust Ankhchimeg, who has been working with them on the factory's financing for many years.

Largest ATM network in Mongolia

Banks act as intermediaries between people who want to lend or borrow money, increase the currency amount in society circulation, and check depositors' accounts to pay or receive payments to people or companies living far away through three main activities: deposits, lending and exchange. Mongolia currently has 11 commercial banks, which support people's lives in a variety of ways, including loans to small and medium-sized enterprises, housing loans and foreign exchange transactions. However, in the past, during the long socialist regime, there was only one state-owned bank, and all production and consumption were regulated by the Government. The privatisation of state-owned banks and the establishment of a series of commercial banks as we know them today came after the country began its journey from socialism to democracy in 1990. It was also during this period that Mongolia's first stock exchange was established.

Khaan Bank was established when the agricultural arm of a state-owned bank was privatised. The bank fell into financial difficulties for a time, but in 2003, HS Holdings, the holding company of the major Japanese travel company HIS, together with a local conglomerate, took a stake in the bank and began restructuring its operations, which led to its rise to become one of the top banks in the country. Today, the bank has a network of more than 500 branches throughout the country, from Ulaanbaatar city to the nomadic regions, and boasts the largest ATM network in the country. It is said that 70% of Mongolians have opened accounts with the bank.

Sh. Ganbyamba, Head of Human Resources at the Head Office of Khaan Bank, responsible for the entire group's human resources

Khaan Bank became keen to employ persons with disabilities about 15 years ago. According to S .H. Ganbyamba, who joined the bank at that time as a human resources (HR) officer and now oversees overall human resources as HR manager at the head office, at that time, the amount of payment levied for not meeting the statutory employment rate was increased, and the corporate social responsibility (CSR) trend became more significant. Another factor behind the employment of persons with disabilities was the spread of training courses that called to receive disability certificates if they were, without concealing their disabilities.

The bank currently employs about 6 ,000 people, of whom 155 are persons with disabilities, including hearing, physical and internal disabilities. Of these, 54 work at the head office in Ulaanbaatar, highly specialised as financial professionals, and are responsible for risk management, card management and business consultation. Meanwhile, 12 members working at city branches and 89 members working at regional branches are employed in window operations and customer service. The head office selected a batch of applicants through job postings on social networking sites and the website, as well as through referrals from the General Authority for Labour and Social Welfare Service. Some employees with disabilities have been working there for more than 10 years. In addition, six months ago, the company started employing massage therapists in partnership with Best Massage, an affiliated organisation of the Mongolian National Federation of the Blind. Employees who are tired from desk work receive treatment in the waiting room during their breaks.

Cultivate a valuable and trusting relationship with customers

"Ankhchimeg is my right-hand person," says Branch Manager E. Purevsanjaa.

Ankhchimeg, who was introduced to us at the Khan-Uul District Business Centre, housed downstairs from the head office in Khaan Tower, was a woman of intelligence, core strength and cheerfulness from the moment we met her. She is in charge of business loans for small and medium-sized enterprises. She was the top performer in eight branches in Ulaanbaatar for the third year in a row in terms of the number of companies she loaned to. Branch manager E. Purevsanjaa said, "She is a very hard worker and a great team player. She is my reliable right-hand person".

Currently, Ankhchimeg works as a senior relationship manager with many clients, providing them with loans and business advice. However, she has a congenital lower limb disorder that causes her body to sway from side to side when she walks. In the past, this disability often caused her to shed tears of frustration in secret and to swallow her anger silently, as she had no outlet for it. Towards her dream of working in a bank, she got excellent university grades in economics to pass all the application screening with no difficulty. Nevertheless, she was blatantly disrespected in interviews, looked at her whole body with disapproving eyes and said heartbreaking words. As she recalls, "It was hard to keep getting rejection letters, but more than that, I was hurt by the number of people who judged me by my appearance."

Ankhchimeg then worked as a lecturer at a vocational training centre for accountants, but in 2004 the Labour and Welfare Services Department of Sukhbaatar District, where she was registered, recommended her for an interview at Khaan Bank. Despite her fears that she might have a tough time again, she was successful in getting the job by demonstrating her work during university and her post-graduation.

Since being assigned to the current branch in 2008, her fourth year with the bank, she has been busy consulting with clients on loans and finding new clients in her spare time. However, she expresses her joy at working in a job she loves, saying that "Small and medium enterprises hold the key to the country's development." and that "it's rewarding to see the business of my loan customers grow". She has a dream of eventually becoming a branch manager, but she has decided not to pursue work at home, where she lives with her husband, four children and mother-in-law.

Ankhchimeg is trusted by the customers she serves. One such customer is the Gan-Ulziis, who has been running a cashmere factory on the outskirts of Ulaanbaatar since 2004. Having studied in Japan, they uses their network and language skills to export cashmere products to Japan.

The Gan-Ulziis (both ends) say that "Ankhchimeg has helped us to grow our business". They run a cashmere factory on the outskirts of Ulaanbaatar.

They and Ankhchimeg first met in 2012 to discuss financing for the first time. Since then, they has been working with her for ten years, sharing all the information about the factory's operations. ‘She is always concerned about how the factory is doing, whether the business is going well or not. She always comes to see us when we put in new machinery and offers advice," says the Gan-Ulziis. They are grateful that Ankhchimeg has continued to support the factory even after her promotion, passing on information to the team and keeping a constant eye on the factory while mentoring her subordinates. The three laughed warmly at each other: "We talk on the phone every day and see each other several times a month, either at the bank or at the factory, so we are like family."

Warm support that encouraged surgery

Bayanzurkh branch busy with local customers

We visited a branch in Bayanzurkh district in early May, hearing that a bank employee had undergone surgery following a donation from volunteers within the bank. The area is lined with car repair shops and various town factories, and this branch is one of the busiest branches in the area due to the diverse range of industries amongst its customers. On our visit, the branch was crowded with residents who had come to collect their monthly pension payments, as it was the first Monday of the month.

The bank employee greeted us with a beaming smile. B. Ankhzaya, who had been working at the bank for eight years. She had a congenital spinal deformity, which caused a major distortion from her waist to her back and shoulders. However, she underwent surgery in Turkey two years ago, and now, at first glance, the distortion of her body is not visible.

B. Ankhzaya, Bayanzurkh branch, who underwent surgery for spinal deformity with financial support from the bank

Born in Bayangol District, Uvurkhangai Province, south of the majestic Khangai Mountains, B. Ankhzaya was raised by her grandparents until the age of seven, as her mother worked for a military institution and was often transferred. Even after living with her mother, she had to change schools six times before graduating from high school, making it difficult for her to make friends. Instead of playing, she devoted herself to her studies and was selected as a Khaan Bank scholarship student for high achievers at a private management college in Ulaanbaatar. After joining Khaan Bank, she has continued to meet the expectations of others, including being awarded as the best employee in only her second year and being put in charge of high-value loans. Meanwhile, the distortion in her back, which was not so noticeable as a child, worsened rapidly during her growth spurt, and she suffered from increasing pain as the years went by.

Branch Manager A. Byambasren (left) welcomed B. Ankhzaya back to work at the Bayanzurkh branch after the surgery.

One day, she saw a Facebook post about someone with the same condition as hers who was to be operated on by a Turkish doctor. Determined to have the surgery, she consulted first-assigned and then-assigned branch managers, Ganzorig and Darisuren, about the leave of absence. The two liaised with the HR department, which granted her the first three months as paid leave. In addition, the company focused on backing her up by offering her a reduction of six months' worth of mortgage accumulation, which she had continued since joining the bank. In addition, when she started a crowdfunding campaign on Facebook, the two invited all staff to donate, and together with the bank's sympathy money, they raised a third of the necessary expenses. In particular, Ganzorig, whom himself had studied in Turkey, used his network to help with everything from hospital referrals to arranging a hotel for pre-and post-operative rest and was very accommodating. Once it was decided that she would return to work at the Bayanzurkh branch near her home after her surgery, the branch manager, A. Byambasuren, consulted with the HR department to arrange her accommodation. It includes adjusting her working hours and setting up a break room so she could stretch out on a sofa during breaks.

"I was sometimes hurt at job interviews when I was told I couldn't present in front of clients because my body was crooked and didn't look good, but Khaan Bank recognised my potential and even helped me pay for my surgery. I am grateful," says B. Ankhzaya. Currently, the bank is in charge of 300 business owners and others and has handled 1.3 trillion Tugrug (JPY 54.446 billion).

"I am happy seeing my customers' businesses grow with Khaan Bank loans." Ankhzaya's profile is full of confidence, as she speaks in a firm voice and then immediately returns to dealing with customers with a firmer expression.

Promoting understanding of persons with disabilities to all branch managers

According to HR Manager Sh. Ganbyamba, the bank has so far encountered no problems in posting and accommodating the recruited staff with disabilities. She attributes that the head office has encouraged all branch managers to understand persons with disabilities and provide employee training. Following the six company principles: respecting customers, ensuring staff's high expertise, working as a team with no discrimination, actively participating in the business, striving for self-improvement, and promoting digitisation, the bank promotes awareness-raising among employees as part of steps ensuring the principles.

Khaan Bank has been very active in working with DPUB2. In 2018, the bank sent its staff twice to the disability equality training organised by our earlier project, "The Project for Promoting Social Participation of Persons with Disabilities in Ulaanbaatar City" (DPUB 1). Through the project, twenty employees from the HR department and 18 branch managers from Ulaanbaatar City learnt about building an inclusive society and organisation that does not exclude persons with disabilities. Moreover, in May 2022, three staff from the HR department participated in an awareness-raising seminar and a job coach seminar organised by DPUB 2 for companies. Ganbyamba is enthusiastic: "By first deepening the understanding of disability in the HR department, we hope to raise awareness throughout the bank."

The bank is keen to further promote persons with disabilities employment, as the Covid 19 pandemic has led to teleworking, reducing commuting difficulties. Due to the nature of the bank's work, which requires a high level of knowledge and expertise, it is not easy to find suitable job candidates. However, the bank plans to actively recruit wheelchair users who have not been employed so far for a new call centre in Ulaanbaatar. Furthermore, they are willing to improve accessibility for customers with disabilities, such as by installing ramps in front of each branch to allow them to visit the branch.

Khaan Bank is one of the largest banks in the country, supporting people's lives in various ways. DPUB 2 expects the bank to promote the employment of persons with disabilities through the Mongolian Government's job coach employment support service, which will increase opportunities for the bank's employees, its customers and the Mongolian public at large to see persons with disabilities in work. Undoubtedly, the bank will play a significant role in encouraging the employment of persons with disabilities and will be a reliable partner in changing society's attitude towards persons with disabilities.

Company profile

Company name	Khaan Bank
Business	Banking
Number of employees (total)	Approx. 6 000 people
Number of employees with disabilities (total)	155 people (e.g. hearing impairment, physical disability, internal disability) Head office: 54 employees Branches in Ulaanbaatar: 12 employees Branches in rural areas: 89 employees
Reasons for employment of persons with disabilities	Increased payment of the levy Increased attention to corporate social responsibility (CSR) Implementation of the six principles
Initiatives for employing persons with disabilities	The head office calls on all branch managers to understand the needs of persons with disabilities. Training for employees In the future, the company plans to start employing wheelchair users at our call centres.

What is the "Job Coach Employment Support Service"?

The job coach employment support service is a specialised employment support service for persons with disabilities and companies through job coaches, which will be provided from June 2022 by the General Authority for the Development of Persons with Disabilities of Mongolia.

Through this service, hundreds of persons with disabilities are expected to be employed by companies annually. Meanwhile, companies that struggle to employ persons with disabilities must fulfil their social responsibility by paying the levy.