Mongolia Brief June 18, 2014 Part II
Ambassador Meets Slovakian State Secretary
Ulaanbaatar,
June 18 (MONTSAME) Ambassador of Mongolia to Slovakia D.Zumberellkham met with
Peter Burian, the State secretary of the Ministry of Foreign and European
Affairs of the Slovak Republic on Monday.
The sides spoke
about signing several intergovernmental agreements aimed at enhancing
cooperation opportunities and at refining legal environments of collaboration
in trade, economy, investments, agriculture, culture and humanity, and
presented draft treaties to each other.
Mr
Zumberellkham said the Government of Mongolia is planning to provide conditions
of visa-free travel to Mongolia for Slovakians to further boost the
traditional, friendly relationship between Mongolia and the Slovak Republic.
They confirmed
a mutual interest in continuing the existing cooperation and in supporting each
other on fields of international organizations, including the European Union
and United Nations.
Diplomatic Credentials Presented
Ulaanbaatar,
June 18 (MONTSAME) The Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the
Republic of Malta Mr Clifford Borg-Marks Wednesday presented his diplomatic
credentials to the President Ts.Elbegdorj.
Majoring in
law, Mr Borg-Marks became the very first Ambassador of his country to Mongolia.
He told the President that he visited Mongolia first time in 1980s being a
student. Then the dignitaries discussed ways of deepening the
Mongolia-Malta relations.
The same day,
the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan
Ms K.Baktygulova presented the diplomatic credentials to the President, and
conveyed him greetingd of Kyrgyzstan’s President. In the letter, the
leader of Kyrgyzstan Mr A.Atanbayev says he attaches a great importance to the
Mongolia-Kyrgyzstan relations.
Ms Baktygulova
said her country will fully support the Mongolian General-Consulate in Bishkek,
which is to open soon, and added that their side is learning Mongolia's
experiences in democracy, democratic elections and civil registration.
Draft Resolution of Parliament Submitted
Ulaanbaatar,
June 18 (MONTSAME) The Prime Minister N.Altankhuyag Wednesday submitted to the
Speaker Z.Enkhbold a draft resolution of parliament on some measures for
ensuring an implementation of the state policy on railway transportation.
The draft has a
clause on augmenting a number of railway ports near the Mongolia-China border
by establishing an intergovernmental agreement with China, and of seaports in
China to be utilized by Mongolia. It also says about making a long-time
agreement with China on the railway transit transportation terms through
Chinese territory.
Justice Minister Visits Germany
Ulaanbaatar,
June 18 (MONTSAME) Justice Minister Kh.Temuujin has been paying a visit to
Germany since Monday.
During the stay
there, Mr Temuujin met with Dr Gunter Krings, Parliamentary State Secretary at
the Federal Ministry of the Interior, and with Mr Jorg Ziercke, president of
the Federal Criminal Police Office of Germany. Mr Temuujin spoke about legal
and structural reforms in law enforcement system of Mongolia, and shared views
with them on relationship and cooperation between law enforcement agencies of
the two countries.
He noted a need
of training for the staffers at the newly-established and changing
organizations of Mongolia, including the Criminal Investigation Bureau, the
Taikhar (Marshall) Service, the Police Authority and Immigration Agency.
The sides also
shared opinions on experience-learning and staff-exchange on combating newly
appearing crimes in Mongolia such as illegal drug sale, terrorism and
cybercrimes.
The Justice
Minister met Wednesday with Christian Lange, permanent State Secretary for
Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection, to share views on boosting
collaboration between the two ministries. He also visited a prison in Berlin to
see bailiff activities there.
Croatian Ambassador Presents Credentials
Ulaanbaatar,
June 18 (MONTSAME) Ambassador of Croatia to Mongolia Nebojsa Koharovic
presented Wednesday afternoon his letter of credence to the President of
Mongolia Ts.Elbegdorj in the State House.
After the
ceremony, the leader of Mongolia had a brief meeting with the newly-appointed ambassador.
Mr Elbegdorj noted his confidence in the contribution of the Croatian
Ambassador to boosting of relationship and cooperation between the two
countries.
Ambassadors Present Diplomatic Credentials
Ulaanbaatar,
June 18 (MONTSAME) On Wednesday, the Ambassador of Uzbekistan to Mongolia
D.D.Kurbanov and the Ambassador of Georgia to Mongolia Mr D.Aptsiauri presented
their diplomatic credentials to the President Ts.Elbegdorj.
Mr Kurbanov
emphasized that Mongolia and Uzbekistan have been cooperating actively and
fruitfully within the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and other international
organizations.
The Ambassador
of Georgia Mr Aptsiauri said Mongolia and Georgia have ancient ties, and
promised to make all effort to expand the bilateral relations and cooperation.
The President
Elbegdorj wished them successes and said that the Presidential Office and the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs will give support to their mission.
Graduates from NUM donate to National Cancer Center
June 18
(news.mn) Over 120 graduates from the School of Law, National University of
Mongolia, are looking donate to the Department of Radiotherapy of the National
Cancer Center of Mongolia on June 18th by saving money from the party they
would usually throw in 2014.
These graduates
received support from other law firms and collected 9.3 million MNT, that can
be used to buy a defibrillator for the Department of Radiotherapy of the
National Cancer Center.
The ceremony
for the donation of the heart therapeutic defibrillator to the Department of
Radiotherapy at the National Cancer Center is happening tody, June 18th.
There will also
be a book donation that aims to create a library for children at the National
Cancer Center.
Related:
University
Graduates Gift Cardiac Defibrillator – Montsame,
June 18
33 short films entered into the Golden Reel International Film Festival
June 18 (news.mn)
The Golden Reel International Film Festival, taking place in Ulaanbaatar on
June 21st, has received 33 entries of short films so far. The “Underground Film
Festival Mongolia” has been was organized once before in 2013, and is now being
held as an international film festival.
The judges
panel for the festival include Busan International Film Festival 2013 winner
and Mongolian director, S.Byamba, co-founder of the art film NGO Golden
Reel, film director Sh.Ikhbayar, art director Yo.Dalkh-Ochir, writer and poet
G.Ayurzana, and Editor of Goodali journal, A.Amarmend.
During the
Golden Reel International Film Festival the organizers will promote the local
film industry as well as screening foreign underground, avant-garde films to
Mongolian audiences with the official rights. The festival will also show
Mongolian film makers` and the art-film NGO film makers` short films.
The opening of
the Golden Reel International Film Festival will be held at the Student Theatre
at the Mongolian University of Arts and Culture at 11.00 pm on Saturday, June
21st.
“Made in Germany” days
June 18
(Mongolian Economy) Today marked the last day of a three day discussion and
exhibition held in Mongolia with German companies. Stefan Hanselmann, Director
of Integrated Mineral Resource Initiative in Ulaanbaatar, opened
German-Mongolian Business Day 2014, also called Made in Germany. This is the
third time this event has been hosted. Hanselmann says that Mongolia has the
potential to develop at the same rate as Dubai and Qatar.
The event aimed
to improve cooperation and collaboration between Germany and Mongolia as
Mongolian businesses learned from German experiences. Over 30 companies from
Germany participated in the program, whose standards are well known to the
world.
Gerhard
Wackenhut, the Managing Director of CLEOS LLC, said that even though Mongolia
is in recession, it is obvious that for an economy with such a small
population, it can fall easily. On the other side, it has its advantage. With
an economy of a small population, it can revive faster than others. Mongolia is
a risky market, but if you manage this much capacity in a risky environment,
there will be big opportunities.
Currently,
trade between both nations stands at 270.6 million USD. The main imports
Mongolia brings in from Germany include technology, equipment, and cars. On the
other hand, the main exports to Germany include raw materials from animals and
rare earth minerals. This year also marks the 40th year of diplomatic relations
between the two countries who have established a development cooperation of 20
years. The German government has supplied Mongolia with 280 million Euros in
soft loans and grants.
The 30 plus
companies that arrived in Mongolia to participate in the event belong to three
main sectors – engineering processing, infrastructure energy, and corporate
management and business services. Other sectors include IT and renewable
energy. Germany considers itself to be a non-mining country, thus its main
interests in cooperating with Mongolia revolve around infrastructure, water
management, renewable energy, and IT.
German products
that are imported to Mongolia, however, are expensive. The reasons for the high
prices are contributed to the fact that these products are better, but there
are also logistical problems. The custom taxes at the border of Mongolia are
quite high, forcing prices of German products to go up. In a detailed
comparison with China, German products are about 20-30% more expensive than
imported Chinese products.
South Korea to Send Its Troops This Week to Annual "Khaan Quest 2014" Multinational Peacekeeping Exercise in Mongolia
June 18
(infomongolia.com0 The annual "Khaan Quest 2014" multinational
peacekeeping exercise is approaching that set to take place in Mongolia from
June 20 to July 01, 2014.
Accordingly to
Yonhap reported today on June 18, 2014, South Korea will dispatch its troops to
an annual multinational peacekeeping exercise codenamed "Khaan Quest” this
week.
Some 34 South
Korean Marines as well as 8 service members of the Army, Navy and Air Force
will participate in the Khan Quest 2014 multinational field-exercises to take
place at Tavan Tolgoi (Five Hills) training area, the territory of Tuv Aimag in
Mongolia.
During the
drill, the South Korean troops are scheduled to practice how to carry out
operations in conflict areas, provide humanitarian aid and perform their duty
of supporting those facing calamities.
Mongolia has
held the Khan Quest multinational peacekeeping exercise every year since 2003,
with the help of the U.S. Pacific Command, where South Korea sent working-level
officers as observers to the military exercises in Mongolia from 2006 to 2008
and became a full participant in 2009.
This year,
about 1,200 troops from 21 countries, including the United States, China and
Indonesia will join the drill, according to Yonhap sourced from the Marine
Corps.
Speaker receives teachers of University of Denver
Ulaanbaatar,
June 18 (MONTSAME) The meeting between the Speaker Z.Enkhbold and a delegation
of the US University of Denver took place on Wednesday.
The Speaker
expressed a satisfaction with seeing the university’s teachers and gave them
some information about a present economic situation in Mongolia, business
sector and developmental tendencies. Mongolia has been included in the list of
10 countries that have good conditions for making investments, he emphasized.
The Speaker
also answered questions the delegation asked and then exchanged views on some
issues.
Mr Enkhbold is
one of the alumni of the University of Denver. He graduated in 2004, defending
a master degree.
Mongolia ad France to cooperate in defense
Ulaanbaatar,
June 18 (MONTSAME) Amid his working visit to Paris, the Defence Deputy Minister
A.Battor attended ‘Eurosatory 2014’, the international land and air-land
defence and security exhibition on June 17-18.
During his
visit, he also met with Mr Kader Arif, State Secretary for War Veterans and
Memory at the Defence Ministry, to speak about implementation and further
tendency of defence cooperation and relationship of the two countries, and to
sign a technical agreement on defence collaboration. The agreement has become
the first-ever document in defence cooperation between Mongolia and France.
This year, 58
countries took part in the exhibition to display some one thousand army
technique and equipments. During the exhibition, Mr Battor met with management
teams of globally operating companies such as Thales, Airbus, Safran,
MBDA, Vaylon and Thalys.
Stock exchange news for June 18
Ulaanbaatar,
June 18 (MONTSAME) At the Stock Exchange trades held Wednesday, a total of 12
thousand and 379 shares of eight JSCs were traded costing MNT 32 million 529
thousand and 912.50.
"Berkh
Uul” /9,785 units/, "Remikon" /2,164 units/, "State Department
Store” /149 units/, "Merex" /133 units/ and "APU” /100 units/
were the most actively traded in terms of trading volume, in terms of trading
value--"Berkh Uul” (MNT 31 million and 312 thousand), "UB-BUK"
(MNT 360 thousand), "APU” (MNT 357 thousand and 500), "Remikon” (MNT
326 thousand and 764) and "Eermel” (MNT 79 thousand and 762).
The total
market capitalization was set at MNT one trillion 532 billion 153 million 892
thousand and 839. The Index of Top-20 JSCs was 15,126.28, decreasing by MNT
39.41 or 0.26% against the previous day.
Press release: World comes together to combat desertification
June 17 (Oyu
Tolgoi) Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia - The world’s deserts, while beautiful, are
growing with unwelcome speed as over-demand for water and climate change cause
increased desertification of previously wet land.
As the problem
has become better recognised by Government, business and NGOs, since 2007, the
world has come together on the 17 June to seek common agreements and approaches
to the problem This year, World Day to Combat Desertification takes place under
the slogan: “The land belongs to the future.”
Mongolia joined
the UN Convention on desertification in 1996 and, each year, raises public
awareness about the causes and impact of desertification. With a high desert
area – 42.5 per cent of Mongolia falls in the Gobi – and a growing mining
industry, Mongolia is at higher risk of desertification than most other
countries. Around 90 per cent of Mongolia’s pastureland is thought to be at
risk. Although, desertification is natural phenomena, the rate and speed at
which it takes place is very much dependent on human activity.
The Mongolian
government recognized this with the adoption of a national anti-desertification
programme, with a strong focus on the protection of water sources, land
rehabilitation and good forestry management.
Increasingly,
responsible mining companies recognise the role that they need to play in these
efforts. Operating in the Gobi, Oyu Tolgoi could only work sustainability if it
took these commitments seriously.
As well as only
utilising water for the mine’s operations from a previously undiscovered deep
saline aquifer, separate from shallow water sources used by local people and
animals, the company uses world-leading technology to limit the water it uses.
In the first
four months of the year, Oyu Tolgoi used 0.549 cubic metres of water per tonne
of ore processed, less than half the average of 1.22 cubic metres for similar
mines worldwide. Over the same period, water recycling at Oyu Tolgoi averaged
86.4 per cent. This means that, on average, each drop of water is reused more
than five times.
Oyu Tolgoi is
also committed to undertaking significant rehabilitation of the area
surrounding the mine. Last year, the company planted saxaul trees across six
hectares of Khanbogd soum, with an 80 per cent survival rate and more planting
planned throughout 2014.
To mark World
Day to Combat Desertification, Oyu Tolgoi ran an essay competition for
students, academics and scientists to publicise and promote their ideas to
combat desertification related to the mining industry. Around thirty articles
were submitted, with the competition won D.Budragchaa, Metallurgical analyst at
Oyu Tolgoi.
In his essay,
D.Budragchaa noted that five per cent of Mongolian territory faces a very high
risk of desertification, 18 per cent a strong risk of desertification, and 26
per cent a moderate risk. He warned that: “If everyone pays conscious attention
to their actions and loves and cherishes every piece of natural environment, we
can maintain a natural balance, and nature will be generous to us to the same
extent. We should always remember that we ourselves will be the victims
otherwise.”
SDC development cooperation with Mongolia: a spotlight on agriculture, decentralisation and small-scale mining
June 18 (SDC) Ten years ago the SDC opened
a cooperation office in the Mongolian capital, Ulaanbaatar. Diepak Elmer,
deputy director of the SDC’s cooperation office in Mongolia, explains the
priorities of Switzerland’s activities there and the political and economic
challenges faced.
What are the main areas of focus in
Mongolia for Swiss development cooperation?
There are three
main ones: agriculture and food security; vocational education and training;
and decentralisation. There is also small-scale mining, which is becoming increasingly
important in Mongolia and which the SDC would like to give more weight to in
the future.
In the area of
agriculture, food security is a top priority. Mongolia is not self-sufficient
in staple foods, even though it covers an area half the size of Western Europe,
has about 50 million livestock and a population of barely 2.9 million. The
climate is partially to blame. From November to April the ground is frozen
solid, so vegetables can be grown for only half of the year. During the growing
season the population must produce enough vegetables to tide them over during
the winter, otherwise they must rely on imports from neighbouring countries.
The SDC has helped Mongolia to rebuild its potato sector, introducing new
varieties of potato and new seed. Mongolia is now practically self-sufficient
in potatoes.
In winter the
Mongolians are heavily reliant on the meat from their livestock. The country is
regularly affected by dry summers followed by extremely hard winters with heavy
snowfall and temperatures below 40°C – a phenomenon known as the dzud. The
herds can then no longer find enough pasture under the snow to graze. They then
die in huge numbers. For herdsmen with only a few hundred animals this can
quickly endanger their livelihood. In its cooperation programme in Mongolia the
SDC has therefore concentrated on the challenges of livestock raising and
pasture management from the outset. The country is now better equipped to deal
with such extreme situations.
Vocational
education and training is a new SDC focus area in Mongolia. The country has a
very high number of young people – a major driver for the economy. And yet,
although the economy is booming – growth was almost 12% in 2013 – they cannot
find work. Unofficially it is estimated that around 20% of young people leave
university or complete an apprenticeship to find themselves jobless. Skilled
tradesmen such as bricklayers, plumbers, metalworkers and welders are highly
sought after in Mongolia. But the training available in these trades is not good
enough to meet the requirements of a modern economy. This is where Switzerland
comes in. Swiss aid is strengthening the vocational education and training
system, concentrating on the skilled trades.
Let us turn now to the third focus area of
decentralisation: what can you tell us about that?
Decentralisation
is something that the Mongolian president, Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj, is keen to
promote. The thinking behind it is that the most efficient use is made of
public resources when decisions are taken locally. To illustrate this, the
official in the Mongolian capital Ulaanbaatar cannot be as well informed of the
specific needs of a school or hospital a thousand kilometres away as the local
population would be. The point of decentralisation is to move the funding and
the decision-making away from central government and out to the local level.
The SDC has
introduced a programme to support Mongolia in its first steps towards
decentralisation. In 2013 the country went through an initial reform and
introduced new budgetary legislation. For the first time a proportion of the
investment budget is being transferred to what are known as local development
funds. Decisions are then taken with citizen participation at the local level
to determine in which projects to invest the funds. Switzerland is helping the
government to implement the new law and advising it how to accommodate the
wishes of the people.
The SDC is also
involved in small-scale mining. Small-scale mining is a source of jobs and
opportunities to earn an income for rural and poorer parts of the population.
The sector came into being in the 1990s; today up to 100,000 Mongolian families
are estimated to earn an income from seasonal employment in small-scale mining.
Regulations and guidelines are often non-existent – people simply take a shovel
or a pickaxe and start to dig, sometimes in hazardous conditions. Small-scale
mining was prohibited up until 2010, when it was made legal. Since 2005 the SDC
has been supporting Mongolia in formalising the sector in an environmentally
and socially responsible way.
What are the political and economic factors
in Mongolia that influence Swiss development cooperation?
A major
challenge facing the country is how to manage its new-found wealth. In recent
years Mongolia has had double-digit economic growth. The main reasons for this
have been investments in the mining sector and exports of raw materials.
Mongolia is rich in gold, coal and copper resources. Far more money is now
flowing into the country than before. The question is how the government and
people manage it.
The wealth of
commodities provides the country with exceptional development opportunities,
but also brings with it some major challenges. Mongolia has to find a way of
taking the revenue from the commodities sector and investing it in the
country’s development, sustainably and equitably. If it can achieve that, then
within one generation Mongolia will become one of the world’s richest nations.
Sustainable management of its resources will be vital for Mongolia if it is to
make progress in all other areas. That is the overriding challenge, also for
Swiss development cooperation in Mongolia.
The SDC has had a cooperation office in
Mongolia since 2004. What were the circumstances surrounding Switzerland’s
decision to commence development cooperation activities in Mongolia ten years
ago?
From 2001–2004
the SDC was providing humanitarian aid in Mongolia, in response to a UN appeal.
Mongolia had just experienced three consecutive dzuds in 1999–2001. Over
160,000 families lost more than half of their livestock and the economy was
weak. Many people moved to the capital, Ulaanbaatar, and at the same time
poverty shot up. At the turn of the millennium around two thirds of the
population was living below the poverty line. The humanitarian aid programmes
concentrated on the livelihoods of herdsmen and their families.
Link to
interview
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