His Excellency Nambar Enkhbayar, President of Mongolia, visited with the 54Mongolian students at BYU-Hawaii on September 20, answered their questions, listened to their accomplishments and encouraged them to help provide similar educational opportunities for others by creating jobs when they return home.
President Enkhbayar, who was elected in June, stopped over at BYU-Hawaiia nd the Polynesian Cultural Center while en route home from meetings at the UnitedNations. He was accompanied by his wife, First Lady Onon Tsolmon; His Excellency Jugderemid Gurragchaa, the first Mongolian cosmonaut; and an entourage of 28 officials and Mongolian media representatives.
BYU-Hawaii President Eric B. Shumway, members of the President's LeadershipCouncil and Polynesian Cultural Center officers welcomed the Mongolian visitors and briefed them on the mission and objectives of the university's sister institutions. After the briefing, the group gathered in the David O. McKay foyer where President Enkhbayar answered questions from the Mongolian students for approximately an hour, all in Mongolian.
During a special banquet for the visiting dignitaries in the campus ballroom, all of the Mongolian students delighted the dignitaries by singing My Country. President Shumway also explained that the first Mongolian student came to BYU-Hawaii in 1994. At the current count of 54, they are the ninth largest group of international students at the university.
Three Mongolian students then shared their BYU-Hawaii experiences:
Erdenetsetseg Tumurbaatar, a senior in accounting, said her student job at the Willes Center for International Entrepreneurship on campus "has given me the opportunity to be part of a work that will eventually help Mongolia."
She told how the university "emphasizes high ethical standards and makes sure that we honor the law of the land.
"This is very important, because we will take that to our homes," she added.
Tumurbaatar also noted that for the last four years, Mongolian students have won prizes in the university's annual entrepreneurial business plan competition for developing nations. She added how impressed she was that BYU-Hawaii goes as far as sending out faculty to accompany their graduates back to their native lands and "make sure they succeed in their careers, running businesses and becoming self-reliant."
Enkhbold Munkhtur, a sophomore majoring in computer science, has already completed an internship back in Mongolia. "Since I came here, my whole vision and views toward my country have changed," he said. "I feel the responsibility to study harder. It's like being a student ambassador among all the students here from different countries."
"I'm so grateful this Church has organized this university that does not only teach academic lessons, but also important moral principles and ethics," he added.
Udvalmaa Baljinnyam, a senior majoring in social work, told President Ehkhbayar she has participated in three international internships while attending BYU-Hawaii—two in Mongolia and one in Cambodia. "I visited charities, non-government and government organizations and learned a great many things," she said. "I found many new ideas that I can take back to my country."
"It has been a privilege for me to be able to attend here and learn from a great many people," she added. "I cannot adequately express my gratitude for this chance." Baljinnyam noted that she has already been offered a university teaching position when she graduates.
"I know that all my education will be very useful and beneficial to my country," she said.
President Enkhbayar praised the Mongolian students for their educational progress. "When you are back home, you have to give a chance to others like you have been given a chance," he said, by starting up businesses and helping provide jobs. "With this kind of chance, Mongolia will not be a developing country, but a developed country. That's what we're trying to reach with highly educated, highly motivated, active and energetic young people who have seen the world and made friends."
He added that the founder of BYU-Hawaii, David O. McKay, recognized such students could help create international peace. "Peace comes when there is development," he concluded.
Following the remarks, BYU-Hawaii President Eric B. Shumway showered the Mongolian leader with gifts. He presented him first with a hand-carved Hawaiian paddle, which symbolized "moving forward." He then presented a Hawaiian koa wood box, along with five DVDs that contained surgical techniques that Mongolian students at BYU-Hawaii produced in cooperation with the Mongolian Health Sciences University as educational tools for rural doctors.
President Shumway's wife, Carolyn Shumway, presented the First Lady with matching hand-stitched Hawaiian pillows with a breadfruit motif she said represented "not only the staff of life but also giving to others. It reflects our admiration and aloha for you."
After being presented more gifts from the Polynesian Cultural Center, the official party then attended the PCC evening show.