Entrepreneur stresses need to diversify

M. Davaasuren, General Director of Gan Khiits, told a recent seminar on the Mongolian industrial scene, that individual sectors in the country were too small and companies have to diversify to expand, if not just to survive. His company began with construction, but has now achieved success in several other fields. It has supplied metal designs and the workforce to install them in the tallest building coming up in Ulaanbaatar. It also builds all kinds of electricity tower bases and is now responsible for meeting 25% of the demand in Mongolian. It also wants to produce something for the individual consumer, and edible mushroom, sold under the brand name Husandai, is grown year round.

Davaasuren says his formula for success has not changed in the seven years he has been in business. “I do not demand any subsidy from the government but domestic industries cannot survive and flourish without easier access to affordable credit,” he said, adding that the alternative was exempted manufacturing units from paying tax, maybe for just the first year of operation. He called upon Mongolians to be more industry-minded. “We receive free or heavily subsidized education, and can pay back our debt to the state by generating employment and producing import substitutes,” he said. Mongolian engineers have all the skills required for this. All they need is encouragement and a little initial support.