AusAID / Countries / East Asia / Mongolia

Strategic goals

Other information

Mongolia

Contact //Tel: +61 2 6178 4000
Fax: +61 2 6178 4880 // Post: GPO Box 887, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia

Overview
See our results
Funding
Research
Maps

Australia reaffirms aid commitment in Mongolia

Humanitarian response to Mongolia’s extreme weather conditions

Australian support to the mining sector in Mongolia

How we are helping

Estimated outcome for 2012/13

$14.6 million

Budget estimate for 2013/14

$16.5 million

Strategic goals

Priority	Spend (%)
Total	100
Saving lives	6
Promoting opportunities for all View all initiatives	71
Sustainable economic development View all initiatives	18
Effective governance	3
Humanitarian and disaster response	1
General development support	0

Australia's assistance to Mongolia is focused on three priority themes:

human resource development—building the leadership base of the public and private sectors through scholarships
mining for development—strengthening governance in the mining sector to help ensure mining revenues are equitably distributed, and the social and environmental impacts of mining are effectively managed
supporting vulnerable communities—improving water, sanitation and hygiene facilities for disadvantaged rural children to prevent illness among students, teachers and the community more broadly.

Australia’s assistance will promote a well governed, economically resilient and equitable Mongolia.

Australia has invested $29.6 million in Mongolia over the previous three years. Our investment has contributed to important development results including:

alumni of the Mongolia Australia Scholarships Program includes a cadre of current parliamentarians, former ministers and senior public servants
development of a methodology to conduct cost-benefit analyses of mine sites, to strengthen policy-making in the growing Mongolian mining sector
a contribution to a fiscal rescue package that streamlined existing social protection programs and improved budgetary planning, which helped to mitigate the impact of the global recession in 2009–10.

More on results can be viewed under the ‘See our results’ tab above.

Australia expects to provide $14.2 million in development assistance to Mongolia in 2012–13. Australia remains committed to delivering results in Mongolia. We will:

support 38 masters-level students to study in Australia in 2012–13 through the Mongolia Australia Scholarships Program to meet critical human resource needs
partner with UNICEF to improve water and sanitation facilities for 7,800 disadvantaged rural children in northwest Mongolia, improving health outcomes and contributing to increased school attendance rates
support local authorities to manage groundwater resources in the South Gobi region, a key mining area that is also home to communities of pastoral nomads
design a program to support sustainable mining development to boost overall economic development.

More on expected outcomes can be viewed under the ‘See our results’ tab above.

Promoting opportunities for all

Results 2011–2012

Alumni of the Mongolian Australia Awards Scholarships includes a cadre of parliamentarians, former ministers and senior public servants.
Provided 2000 children with upgraded water and sanitation facilities in two schools and two kindergartens in Dornod Province.
Provided training to 3000 school children in hygiene and emergency preparedness in Dornod Province and one district of Ulaanbaatar.
Supported UNICEF to identify 1278 children aged 2–14 years in Mongolia’s first comprehensive disability screening program.

Commitments 2012-2013

Support 38 masters-level students to study in Australia in 2012-13 through the Mongolian Australian Awards Scholarships to meet critical human resource needs.
Partner with UNICEF to improve water and sanitation facilities for 7800 disadvantaged rural children in northwest Mongolia, improving health outcomes and contributing to higher school attendance rates.
Support the continuation of UNICEF’s disability screening program to produce Mongolia’s first comprehensive disability situation analysis.

Sustainable economic development

Results 2011–2012

Developed a methodology to conduct cost-benefit analyses of mine sites, to strengthen policy-making in the growing Mongolian mining sector, through UNDP.
Provided targeted assistance to review and amend the Minerals Law 2006 to strengthen the legal and environment framework of the mining sector.
Conducted a baseline assessment through the World Bank and identified social impacts of mining in Tseteg Province.

Commitments 2012-2013

Support local authorities to manage groundwater resources in the South Gobi region, a key mining area that is also home to communities of pastoral nomads.
Design a program to support sustainable mining development to boost overall economic development.

Australian ODA to Mongolia, 2001-02 to 2013-14 ($m)

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The graph above shows the Australian Official Development Assistance to Mongolia, including AusAID funding and funding by other government departments (OGD).

The exact values are as follows:

2001–02: AusAID $3,185,810, OGD -
2002–03: AusAID $3,380,105, OGD -
2003–04: AusAID $3,054,261, OGD -
2004–05: AusAID $2,823,831, OGD $8,741
2005–06: AusAID $2,759,964, OGD -
2006–07: AusAID $4,124,245, OGD $17,764
2007–08: AusAID $4,339,909, OGD $26,782
2008–09: AusAID $10,637,916, OGD $68,972
2009–10: AusAID $7,471,099, OGD $124,108
2010–11: AusAID $8,756,035, OGD $440,307
2011–12: AusAID $12,782,744, OGD $541,329
2012–13 (estimated outcome): AusAID $14,023,240, OGD $624,645
2013–14 (budget estimate): AusAID $15,908,679, OGD $566,6390

Australian ODA to Mongolia by strategic goal, 2010–11 to 2013–14 (%)

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The graph above shows Australian Official Development Assistance to Mongolia by strategic goal.

The exact values are as follows (%):

2013–14 (budget estimate)
Saving lives: 6
Promoting opportunities for all: 71
Sustainable economic development: 18
Effective governance: 3
Humanitarian and disaster response: 1
General development support: 0
2012–13 (estimated outcome)
Saving lives: 5
Promoting opportunities for all: 65
Sustainable economic development: 24
Effective governance: 5
Humanitarian and disaster response: 1
General development support: 1
2011–12
Saving lives: 4
Promoting opportunities for all: 59
Sustainable economic development: 21
Effective governance: 10
Humanitarian and disaster response: 5
General development support: 1
2010–11
Saving lives: 4
Promoting opportunities for all: 71
Sustainable economic development: 0
Effective governance: 2
Humanitarian and disaster response: 0
General development support: 23

Other ODA in Whole of Government, 2010-11 to 2012-13 ($'000)

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The graph above shows the Australian Official Development Assistance to Mongolia by other government departments.

The exact values are as follows:

Education, Employment and Workplace Relations:
2010–11: $440,307. 2011–12: $258,083. 2012–13: -.
Industry, Innovation, Climate Change, Science, Research and Tertiary Education:
2010–11: -. 2011–12: $283,246. 2012–13: $624,645.

Research overview

Research funded by AusAID’s Mongolia country program specifically targets Mongolia’s development challenges. Some of the highlights of this AusAID-funded research are listed below.

Developing a cost-benefit analysis of mining sites in Mongolia

Mongolia’s environmental degradation has increased since the 1990s. This is due in part, to poor implementation of environmental policies and a lack of transparency in decision-making on commercial developments, including mines.

Because of this, Australia funded the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to develop a methodology for conducting cost benefit analyses of mining operations in Mongolia.

The objectives of the research were:

to inform policy makers and civil society about the welfare issues and true economic costs of degrading ecosystem services as a result of mining development in Mongolia
to demonstrate the value of considering ecosystem services when developing mining projects and maintaining them.

The activity was part of a broader UNDP program, implemented in cooperation with the Mongolian Ministry of Nature, Environment and Tourism.

There was a high level of interest from international and national experts in the activity, reflecting the relevance of the research. Recommendations included further testing and fine-tuning of the existing model. Also recommended was a Mongolian Government review of existing data collection systems at the local and national level, to ensure a greater pool of data for future studies.

As Mongolia still has a lot of strategic decisions to make related to mining, the tool can be an important mechanism to make better informed decisions in the future.

More information can be found on the UNDP website [external link].

Developing a cost-benefit analysis of mining sites in Mongolia—Annual Report 2011

Where is Mongolia?

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See Where We Work in the rest of the world

Demographic and development statistics for Mongolia

Why we give aid

Mongolia faces significant development challenges and approximately one third of the population live below the poverty line. Australian aid is helping Mongolia to improve people’s lives.

Find out more about why we give aid to Mongolia