City officials detail the money Ulaanbaatar needs

Prime Minister S.Batbold told donors and international financial organizations at a meeting organized on Friday by city officials that years ago foreigners used to called Ulaanbaatar Asia’s White Diva. Admitting that would be very much a misnomer today, Batbold called for hard work to make Ulaanbaatar a better city to live in. The first step would be to “identify the image that modern Ulaanbaatar wants to present,” he said.

City officials revealed some data about the Capital City, which is home to 1.114 million Mongolians, or 40.5 percent of the total population. Of this number, 70 percent are under 35. Half of the 210 secondary school buildings do not meet standards. Many schools do not have sports facilities. Not one new kindergarten has been built in the last 20 years. Of the 274 now in use, 65 do not have any open area where children can play, 37 have no water supply. The number of children born every year in Ulaanbaatar is between 27,000 and 30,000 on an average, but only 40 percent of them attend kindergarten, and the rest are cared for by grandparents. Deputy Mayor Ts.Tsogzolmaa said the city needed at least 64 new kindergartens, particularly for children under 3.

USD20-25 million will be needed to set up kitchens to prepare the midday meal for schools pupils, USD 17-20 million for new maternity centers, USD$20-25 million for a diagnostic center, and USD1-2 million for training of nurses and doctors.

The City General Manager Ts.Gankhuu said the population of Ulaanbaatar has been annually increasing by 30 percent for the last 9 years. The city’s infrastructure was built for a maximum of 500,000 residents and is bursting at the seams. The MNT 120 billion received last year from the Development Fund was spent on building new sewage and drainage.

The main road in the city is planned to extend from Gachuurt to the 22 post check, a length of 27 km. USD185.5 million will be needed to build this and the expense for other roads has been estimated as USD458.1 million investment. There would be special roads for cyclists and disable people.