Mongolia

Following disagreements between the government and major international mining firms, Mongolia is taking steps to reassure investors. However, it has proven difficult to convince interested parties that these disputes are not indicative of a deeper conflict building between the present leadership and the foreign firms that are extracting minerals.

Funds raised through Mongolia’s first national bonds are set to have an impact on the wider economy, with the government announcing in February that fournew major projects will benefit from the so-called“Genghis” bonds. However, critics still fear the issuance could back fire.

A controversial draft Minerals Law that the government hopes will steer Mongolia’s mining industry into a new era has divided opinion across the country, with supporters highlighting the need for change, while critics say its implementation could put the industry’s future at risk.

Efforts by Mongolia’s government to improve conditions for increasingly wealthy local consumers bode well for the fledgling retail industry. There are concerns, however, that watchdogs and legislation will not be able to keep pace with the rapid growth of the industry.

Cabinet approval for Mongolia’s first satellite in late 2012 makes clear the height of the country’s ambitions for improving information and communications technology (ICT) provisions. Although a satellite launch is an ambitious objective, improving on-the-ground infrastructure will prove to be just as significant, and as challenging.

Mongolia is bracing itself for a colder-than-average winter following a harvest that, while strong, failed to meet agricultural targets. Severe weather conditions are raising fears of a dzud, otherwise known as a summer drought and severe winter, which in previous years decimated Mongolia’s herds and sent agricultural output spiralling.