Mongolia
In 1990 Mongolia abandoned its 70-year-old Soviet-style one-party state and embraced political and economic reforms.
Democracy and privatisation were enshrined in a new constitution but the collapse of the economy after the withdrawal of Soviet support triggered widespread poverty and unemployment.
Once the heartland of an empire stretching to Europe under Genghis Khan Mongolia is a landlocked country dominated by sparsely populated steppe and semi-desert.