A thousand days have passed since the 35th Governor of Ulaanbaatar D.Sumiyabazar was appointed as the Mayor in October 2020. Since taking office, he has been following the Tribasic Program to reform the legal environment, increase economic capacity, and develop healthy governance. The implementation rate of the Tribasic Program or Legal Program, Economic Program, and Healthy Governance Program are at 70%, 60%, and 40% respectively.

As part of the legal program, the Law on the Legal Status of the Capital City was amended after 27 years and approved by the State Great Khural, and the city was able to develop independently economically. Article 49.1 of the law stipulates that "The research and analysis center with the function of studying the problems related to the history and prospects of the development of the capital city, urbanization, urban development, population, and the environment shall be headed by the Governor of the Capital City and will work under the Mayor of Ulaanbaatar". According to this, Ulaanbaatar City established the Policy Research and Analysis Center or "Think Tank" for the first time last year. Now, with the participation of more than 30 research institutes, 16 universities, scientists, teachers, and international research organizations, the institute is developing a city development study, and Ulaanbaatar City is making policies based on it.

With the approval of the Law on the Legal Status of the Capital City, the city of Ulaanbaatar has the right to spend the income that it supplies in the budget in the last two years. In other words, instead of construct according to the approved budget, the budget is spent based on the needs and requirements of the development.

D.Sumiyabazar: When the legal environment improves, the economy will be developed and healthy governance will be established

The Governor of the Capital city and Mayor of Ulaanbaatar was interviewed about the policies and decisions of the capital's management team and the Tribasic Program that they are implementing.

-On what basis and how are the decisions of the Governor of the Capital city and the policies of the city of Ulaanbaatar made?

-There are many works that need to be done and implemented in the capital. Since taking office in 2020, we are working to increase the legal and financial capacity of Ulaanbaatar and develop the independent economy of the city. There is an inevitable need to create additional sources of capital to solve the problem in stages. Therefore, we are paying attention to and aiming to strengthen and improve the connection between the Parliament, the Government and the capital city. As a result, Ulaanbaatar city was granted the right to issue bonds for the first time.

The city's management team makes policies and decisions based on data collected from nine districts and 123 affiliated organizations, and based on research and analysis. The Governor of the Capital city works within 153 functions. A policy research institution is essential to fulfill this function. Where research and data are available, rational decision-making and sound planning are possible. An important advantage is the establishment of a "Think Tank" under the Governor of the Capital city, which can directly and openly cooperate with foreign research and analysis centers and universities. Therefore, the decision of the Governor of the Capital city is based on the research and solutions of a large academic team.

-How sufficient is the annual budget approved for Ulaanbaatar. What amount is needed to solve the problems accumulated in the last 30 years and how will it be formed?

-In the past, the city's budget was very low for many problems faced by previous mayors. For example, the public transport fleet has not been renovated since 2009. Therefore, the government made a historic decision to keep the revenue supplied by Ulaanbaatar in the form of investment in the capital city. A hundred billion of the capital's 2022 budget of 420 billion is spent to increase access to schools and kindergartens, 75 billion on land acquisition for construction, 68 billion on updating the public transport fleet, and 160 billion is withdrawn by the Ministry of Finance. In addition, major projects such as digital transition and link road are being implemented. However, this amount of investment is not enough to solve all the problems facing the city. There are still works to be done and implemented. Although it is said in many ways, good and bad, the "Erdenes Bayanbogd" project is a source of funds and resources for the development of the capital city, which needs to be done in the future.

-There is less than a year left until the end of the term of office of the Mayor D.Sumiyabazar. What are your plans and goals for the rest of your duty?

-The created investment and financial resources will be distributed and constructions will be planned based on the 86 indicators of the development index of Ulaanbaatar city. In order to eliminate the factors that slow development, it is necessary to improve the legal environment. Therefore, legal regulation and reforms will be continued, and a set of Ulaanbaatar city laws is being developed. When the legal environment improves, the economy will develop, and when the economy develops, healthy governance will be established.

In today's society, the population and development constructions are growing by the hour, not by the day. For example, by 2040, the population of Ulaanbaatar will reach 2.6 million, according to the study of Policy Research and Analysis Center. Therefore, the issuance of securities and the implementation of the "Erdenes Bayanbogd" project should be the foundation of the city's development during the future population growth, such as the construction of satellite cities, the expansion of engineering infrastructure, and the increase of main and link roads.

In addition, a set of Ulaanbaatar city laws is being developed to provide a leverage for the capital to gain independent economic and legal capacity. This set of laws consists of more than ten laws, such as the Law on Land, the Law on Construction, the Law on Water, the Law on Road Transport, the Law on Energy, the Law on Specially Protected Areas, and the General Law on State Registration. The law will be discussed at this fall session of the Parliament.

MEDIA AND PUBLIC RELATIONS DEPARTMENT OF THE GOVERNOR’S OFFICE OF THE CAPITAL CITY