Experts say railway development is the bridge to prosperity

A research conference titled “Mongolian Railway Development Issues” took place at the State Palace on Wednesday. The conference brought together experts, researchers and scholars to evaluate the current shortcomings of the railway system, discuss railway infrastructure development, the railway’s current state, near and long term policy development, and provide information to the public.

The conference was organized by decree of the Speaker of the Parliament, a Parliament task force responsible for the expansion of transportation and logistics policy, the International Study Center of the Science Academy, Cambridge University in Great Britain, and the Union of Mongolian Railway Engineers.

The event hosted more than 150 delegates from around 30 organizations including parliament, government, the National Security Council, science and research institutions, labor unions, and private sector agencies in the railway industry. The delegates discussed the outlined agenda topics and also talked about the significant role of railways in Mongolia’s development. Cambridge University and the Science Academy presented projects and studies that are being conducted concerning Mongolia’s mining, railways and geopolitics.

The shortest route linking Asia to Europe is through Mongolia. The delegates talked about using this advantage in the future by forming a “bridge” to link our neighboring countries, connecting Siberia’s vast mineral wealth to Chinese industries. “Mongolia’s railway has enormous potential and can play a vital role in the economic development of the nation if it efficiently utilizes its potential as a transportation network. The development of railways will not only improve infrastructure but provide the opportunity for sales of petroleum, natural gas, communication and an energy network, and improve foreign investment by increasing regional transportation capacity,” said delegates at the meeting.

The parliament is paying special attention to the State’s railway policies as well as civil aviation sector policies to form a unified network in the near and mid-term future, said the public relations department of the Office of the Parliament. The government is currently implementing the Transit Mongolia National Program, which was approved in 2008 and focuses on trade and reducing transportation fees. The program will end in 2015.

The Office of the Parliament reported that a task force of 11, led by parliament member G.Batkhuu, was assigned to form a unified long-term action plan for the government on the development of the transportation network used by the private sector for cross country shipping, communication and electric transmission networks, as well as transportation policy based on the experiences and solutions of other countries.

The Office of the Parliament said that the railway conference was extremely significant in solidifying cooperation between the government and experts to inform all those who are concerned about the programs being implemented, learning from the experiences of other countries, and openly sharing views on the development of the nation’s railway infrastructure and network.

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