Ulaanbaatar improves its position in most polluted cities ranking www.akipress.com

Ulaanbaatar was moved from the top 10 most polluted cities in the world from the fall of 2019.

Population of Mongolia to reach 4 million by 2030 www.montsame.mn

Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/. Today, November 13, the Cabinet meeting heard a presentation by Minister of Labor and Social Protection S.Chinzorig on state policy for labor and social protection industry for 2020-2024 and projection of investment and development.

Considering exporting to Mongolia? Read our new doing business guide www.export.org.uk

With a growing population of 3.2 million people, Citigroup analysts determined Mongolia to be one of the ‘Global Growth Generating’ countries, which are countries with the most promising growth prospects for 2010–2050.

Proposed Legislation To Restrict Civil Society In Mongolia www.theowp.org

In a move that mimics recent acts by Russia, Poland and Hungary, the Mongolian government is preparing to debate proposed legislation that will allow government oversight of non-government organisations (NGOs). As reported by The Washington Post’s Aubrey Menarndt, the legislation requires the creation of a Civil Society Development Council, which will grant the government extensive powers over NGO operation. The Council will also require NGOs to submit annual reports that detail their funding, in an effort to reduce ‘money-laundering’ and ‘terrorist financing’. The proposed legislation prohibits NGO activities that go against ‘public unity’, and grants the government greater control over NGO funding.

While there is a general acknowledgement amongst the NGO community that Mongolia’s civil society must be streamlined, the proposed legislation has caused serious concerns. Craig Castagna, the resident program director for the International Republican Institute, told The Washington Post: “There is widespread agreement amongst stakeholders that Mongolia’s laws and regulations concerning NGOs need to be updated and streamlined, but not at the expense of restricting fundamental freedoms of assembly, association and expression.”

Such concerns are fueled by the use of similar legislation in Russia, known as the foreign agent’s law, to weaken civil society and increase government control. In a speech to the Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe’s Permanent Council, Vienna, Ambassador Daniel B. Baer stated that, “Russia’s so-called ‘foreign agents’ law raises serious concerns about Russia’s respect for its OSCE commitments and its obligation to respect the right to freedom of association.” The Ambassador paid particular attention to the use of this law in targeting NGOs that are perceived as ‘foreign agents’, such as those that promote gender and queer equality.

The proposed legislation has the critical aim of improving Mongolia’s NGO system, but it will also grant the government effective control over NGO funding and approval. This is particularly problematic as it creates a distinct opportunity for the misuse of power, which in turn can fuel corruption. For instance, the government could force the closure of NGOs that act against the government’s interests. This essentially inhibits the ability of NGOs to hold the government to account, while simultaneously granting government control over what and whom NGOs can and cannot advocate for.

In recent years, there have been growing concerns about the threat such legislation, and the control it entails, will have on civil society. In 2012, Russia enacted the foreign agent’s law, which severely restricted the freedoms of NGOs. The legislation mandates that NGOs must register with the relevant department, and provide financial statements that detail where their funding comes from. In the following years, Poland and Hungary enacted laws that all share similar provisions to the foreign agent’s law (namely restricted access to funding for NGOs that are perceived to be a threat to social unity). Bureaucratic tools are used to weaken NGO autonomy, while a related effort is used to endorse apolitical and pro-government organisations. According to Aubrey Menarndt, Mongolia’s proposed legislation shares similar provisions, which is a cause for concern. Coupled with recent moves by the Mongolian government to limit judicial powers, the legislation could greatly impact Mongolia’s democracy.

The proposed legislation could severely restrict freedom of association in Mongolia. Such freedoms are essential to any democracy, and could indicate that Mongolia is on the precipice of further ‘democratic backsliding’. Not only does this impact NGOs, but also those for whom the NGOs advocate. In many instances, NGOs (and particularly international NGOs), are the only organisations that speak for and support disadvantaged minorities. If this is to change in Mongolia, minorities may become further disadvantaged, and potentially, persecuted.

Ger area turning into smoke-free housing area www.montsame.mn

Ulaanbaatar/MONTSAME/. ‘Infrastructure center’, also known as service center, opened on November 12, in the ger area of 7th khoroo of Chingeltei district, Ulaanbaatar city. Specifically, over 200 households of the 7th khoroo have been connected to the main trunk infrastructure within the ‘Infrastructure center’ project.

National ₮ card renewed with EMV chip technology www.montsame.mn

Ulaanbaatar/MONTSAME/. Within its goal to develop the payment system, the Bank of Mongolia made its first step of bringing Mongolia’s national payment ₮ card into a new level or renewing it with EMV chip technology, in collaboration with the Asian Development Bank through the ‘Payment System Modernization Project’.

Natural gas supply set to satisfy needs in key season www.chinadaily.com.cn

A natural gas supply crunch is unlikely to happen nationwide in the 2019-20 heating season, due to a slower increase in natural gas consumption, and strengthened supply capabilities arising from continuous domestic production growth, increased imports, and improved gas infrastructure, industry insiders said.

The country's annual natural gas output is expected to reach more than 170 billion cubic meters this year, increasing by more than 11 billion cubic meters, while it is putting more overseas natural gas in pipelines, Xinhua News Agency reported on Tuesday, citing an unidentified official of the National Development and Reform Commission.

The China-Russia east-route natural gas pipeline project is expected to start operation in early December, and imports of overseas liquefied natural gas have seen rapid growth.

The official also emphasized the availability of cross-regional energy connectivity infrastructure such as the south-to-north natural gas transmission project and one that boosts supply for the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region from northeastern China.

China is expected to build a gas storage capacity of about 20 billion cubic meters this year, and at present, the gas storage facilities of the top three oil and gas companies have completed gas injection as planned, to ensure gas supplies during the heating season, the official said.

Zhao Xu, an oil and gas expert with the School of Economics and Management at China University of Petroleum (Beijing), said the total gas supply from domestic output and overseas imports will be around 320 billion cubic meters in the year, slightly surpassing the estimated yearly demand of 311 billion cubic meters, if estimated on the basis of the supply and demand growth curves from January to August.

"It is highly possible that this winter will be relatively warm due to the El Nino phenomenon, and the switch from coal to gas for heating in northern China has been carried out smoothly without haste, which all help ensure the balance between gas supply and demand," she said, adding that the gas crunch in 2017 was largely worsened by an unexpected sharp decrease in overseas supplies.

Xiong Wei, assistant director of the pipeline gas trading department at Shanghai Petroleum and Natural Gas Exchange, emphasized that the ongoing decrease in China's gas consumption growth rate is likely to continue during the winter season, largely due to the slowed increase in industrial use.

From January to September, China consumed 216.6 billion cubic meters of gas, with a year-on-year growth of 10.1 percent, which was 7.4 percentage points less compared to last year.

On the contrary, China produced 126.3 billion cubic meters of gas in the first three quarters, increasing 10.9 percent year-on-year, which marked a milestone in that domestic gas output growth outstripped domestic gas consumption growth for the first time.

"Year-on-year as consumption growth rate this winter will be no more than 10 percent, and considering PetroChina's natural gas output this winter is likely to outpace that of last year, while gas supplies to northern regions from Sinopec and CNOOC for the heating season are expected to grow respectively by 1.18 billion and 1.5 billion cubic meters, the gas demand and supply is supposed to be balanced generally," he said, adding that the currently much lower imported LNG prices also contribute to increased supplies.

However, he warned that despite the highly likely supply and demand balance on a national level, regional restraints cannot be totally ruled out, especially if unexpected extreme cold weather occurs.

Both Xiong and Zhao said an imbalance in China's gas supply and demand is a long-term concern, as China lacks conventional natural gas resources.

They suggested more government incentives and financial support to be provided to develop unconventional natural gas resources.

Putin & Xi to launch strategic natural gas pipeline from Russia to China in December www.rt.com

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping will take part in the launching ceremony of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline, set to be held next month.
While the leaders will not be physically present at the event, they will join via a teleconference, Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov told media on Monday. The Chinese Foreign Ministry confirmed the official ceremony will happen when the pipeline becomes operational in December.

South Korean river turns red after being polluted with pigs' blood www.bbc.com

A river near the inter-Korean border has turned red after being polluted with blood from pig carcasses.

Mongolia exports 32.3 million tons of coal as of first ten months www.montsame.mn

Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/. Mongolia planned to export 42 million tons of coal in 2019. According to statistics of Mongolian General Customs Administration, Mongolia has exported 32.3 million tons of coal as of first ten months of 2019 which means there is a necessity to export 9.7 tons of coal in order to reach the goal. But the People’s Republic of China appears to maintain its coal import at 200-300 million tons so that the amount of coal export has a tendency to slow down in the last months of 2019 according to Bloomberg.