03/07/2020

A what3words address is a simple and precise way for callers to describe where they are in an emergency, and for NEMA to locate them quickly and send help exactly where it's needed.

Mongolia suffers from unreliable addressing, especially in ger districts and sparsely populated rural areas. This makes it difficult for people to tell emergency services where they need help, and means responders spend precious time trying to locate callers.

‘We receive 4000 to 5000 emergency calls each year and 40% of callers are unable say exactly where they are, or give inaccurate addresses’ – National Emergency Management Agency

To solve this problem, easily locate callers and respond faster, the National Emergency Management Agency in Mongolia now uses what3words.

What is what3words?

what3words is a really simple way to talk about location. It has divided the world into 3m squares and given each one a unique combination of three words – a what3words address. For example, you can find the Erdene Zuu Monastery at /// datable.postmodern.recharge

what3words makes it easy for callers to say exactly where help is needed, and for call handlers to dispatch a team to that location.

The system is available in 45 languages, including Mongolian and English.

Using what3words in an emergency

In an emergency, callers dial 101 or 105 to contact emergency services. When the call handler asks for the location of the emergency, callers can open the free what3words app and read the three words for their location. If they don’t have the app downloaded, the call handler sends them an SMS with a link that displays their what3words address. All they have to do is read it out over the phone.