The Gobi Initiative Phase II Update
Mercy Corps International and PACT

SO1: PRIVATE SECTOR-LED ECONOMIC GROWTH
posted by Skip Waskin on Tuesday, December 13, 2005, 8:13PM

Meeting with President Enkhbayar. Mercy Corps/Mongolia and USAID Representative Skip Waskin met with President Enkhbayar on November 9. The purpose of the meeting was to brief the President on the activities of Mercy Corps in Mongolia, particularly those related to rural economic development. The President praised the work of the Gobi Initiative in "helping herding families to sell livestock-origin materials more profitably" and "improving the living standards of rural residents". The meeting was covered by local television stations and newspapers.

Gobi Clients Invited to Hear President Bush. Two Gobi Initiative clients, Messrs. Bathuyag (a dairy producer) and Ulziibat (a veterinarian), were invited to attend the speech by President Bush at the National Parliament in November. Both said afterwards that it had been a great honor for them to see and hear the U.S. President.

Gobi Clients Win Microenterprise Award. The "Gal Michid" cooperative from Dundgovi, a long-time GI client, received the "Best RuralMicro Business" prize from the Global Microentrepreneurship Award (GMA) Mongolia Advisory Council. The GMA is a global initiative launched by the United Nations Capital Development Fund, the Citigroup Foundation, and the GMA Student Alliance. It is being implemented by UNDP to celebrate the achievements of microentrepreneurs and to promote the role of microfinance in 34 countries throughout the world—making it a key event marking the UN's "International Year of Microcredit". "Gal Michid" is a successful felt producer that has fully engaged all of its members in the business, and it regularly surpasses production and sales targets.

Land Use Workshop. A training workshop on land use laws and regulations was held for Uvurhangai and Dundgovi government officials in November. During the workshop, several important findings were noted for further follow-up. First, some herders have now moved to adjoining or even distant soums on a more permanent basis, and the government will need to decide whether or not to formally re-register them at their new locations. Second, many herders still do not understand why they should obtain formal land use rights for their historical winter and spring grazing areas. Government officials believe that there would be fewer land disputes if they were to do so. And third, many rural residents still do not know who they should contact and what the fees and taxes would be if they were to undertake crop production and hay preparation.

Gobi Client Selection Completed. GI client selection for 2006 has been completed. The project will work with 170 herder groups, including 50 new clients.

Special RBN Edition. A special English-language edition of Rural Business News (RBN) was published to mark the visit of President Bush. This edition contained a collection of the best stories from past RBN magazines.

Herder from the Future Winds Up. The final series of the famous Gobi radio show “Herder from the Future” started airing on Mongol Radio on 12 November. Episodes 100-126 will be broadcast weekly for the next six months. Pact is carefully guarding the secret of how our Future Herder ends up, and is also working on a new radio program that will replace "Herder from the Future".

The Gobi Initiative Phase II Update
Mercy Corps International and PACT

SO1: PRIVATE SECTOR-LED ECONOMIC GROWTH
posted by Skip Waskin on Friday, November 9, 2005, 8:07PM

Trade Fair. The Bayanhongor Aimag government, in cooperation with the Gobi Initiative (GI), organized the "Bayanhongor Trade Fair" in Ulaanbaatar in October. A total of 150 businesses from all twenty soums participated in the event, generating sales of 32.5 million MNT ($27,000). Dairy products were in greatest demand, and all dairy products were sold out within the first day. GI client Jargalant Sumber Hairhan cooperative sold 2.5 million MNT ($2,000) of fresh dairy products at the fair.

New Leadership Training Course. Gobi has been working with client cooperatives to identify and develop the "next generation" of cooperative leaders, and has developed a Young Leaders training course. The topics covered include cooperative management and leadership skills, basic financial record keeping of cooperative accounts, and how to market local products produced by the cooperatives. The first course was held in October, and others will follow in other target aimags (provinces) over the coming winter.

Veterinary Training. Veterinary Laboratory training was conducted in the Dundgobi, Umnugobi, Uvurhangai, and Bayanhongor Aimag Veterinary Laboratories in October. The training focused on diagnostic tests for infectious disease monitoring, epidemiological principles, and food hygiene. This training complements the new USAID-funded laboratory equipment that is now arriving in country, and that will be installed by the end of the calendar year. Together, the training and laboratory equipment will result in fully operational veterinary laboratories serving animal and human health needs in the target aimags.

Prime Minister Lauds the Gobi Initiative. Mercy Corps was invited to make a presentation at a major poverty conference in October, chaired by Prime Minister Elbegdorj. All major donor programs that have a focus on poverty reduction, economic development, and income generation participated in the meeting. During the meeting, the Prime Minister commented that "The Gobi Initiative Program is one of best implemented programs in the country.”

Herder From the Future. RBN finalized production of the final series of the Herder from the Future radio drama in October. Installments 101-126 will be broadcast nationally.

The Gobi Initiative Phase II Update
Mercy Corps International and PACT

SO1: PRIVATE SECTOR-LED ECONOMIC GROWTH
posted by Skip Waskin on Friday, October 21, 2005, 3:57 AM

Trade Fair Month. The big news from Gobi in September was the “trade fairs”, the aimag equivalent of county fairs in the United States. These events were introduced to Mongolia a few years ago by the Gobi Initiative, and after a rather slow start the idea has taken off—big time. Trade fairs took place in September in all project aimags, and attracted large crowds. Total attendance at the six events was estimated at 66,900 out of a total resident population of 370,000, and total sales were about $200,000 (up from about $100,000 last year). Over a thousand exhibitors participated. Local products included dairy goods; bread, cookies and pastries; vegetables; wool and cashmere; hides and leather products; felt products; wood/metal products; handicrafts; wicker items; and construction material. The dairy and vegetable products had the highest demand, with exhibitors selling out of product. Local banks also participated, promoting their services and loan products. The trade fairs organized activities to increase the scale and the popularity of the events, including raffles, children's English classes, free barber and beauty services, airag (fermented mare’s milk) drinking competitions, and cultural events. Raffle prizes were donated by local businesses and the banks, and the Bayanhongor Aimag trade fair organized the first ever "Beach Volleyball" competition in Mongolia.

Trade Fairs: VIPs. The Prime Minister of Mongolia, Ts. Elbegdorj; the US Ambassador, Pamela J. Slutz; new Deputy Chief of Mission Brian Goldbeck; USAID Representative Skip Waskin; and other senior officials from the US Embassy led the official opening of the Dundgovi trade fair on 24 September, and visited the market stalls talking to exhibitors and tasting the products. Members of Parliament from Umnugovi, Govi-Altai and Dundgovi also attended the market events in their respective aimags. The annual trade fairs are becoming “must attend” events for MPs and other senior government officials, a great democracy spinoff from this economic growth project.

Cooperation with Ivanhoe Mines. The Gobi Initiative-supported cooperatives in Uvurhangai, Dundgovi and Umnugovi have completed the third delivery of vegetables to Ivanhoe Mines, bringing the total delivered this season (to date) to twelve tons. GI and Ivanhoe Mines have continued the process of establishing an independent commercial bus service to transport Ivanhoe employees between Dalanzadgad and the Oyu Tolgoi mine site. Two businesses in Dalanzdgad submitted formal applications to the tender that was issued for this, and the GI program office is developing a comprehensive business plan with one of the applicants. USAID hopes that the bus service will start operation in October.

Cooperative Development. Gobi completed an assessment of the organizational development and future leadership needs of herder cooperatives in the Gobi aimags in September, and Mercy Corps is finalizing a detailed work plan aimed at building the institutional capacity of the cooperatives over the next six months. The areas identified for further technical assistance include training on the legal environment and regulations governing the establishment of a cooperative (cooperative laws, tax regulations etc), cooperative management and financial management training, and marketing assistance.

Media and Communications. The "Endless Labyrinth", a 26-part business educational soap opera, debuted on Mongol TV on September 3rd. The program was heavily promoted in local newspapers and through banners and posters. Also in September, the scripting and production of a new radio series of "Herder from the Future" radio drama began, with the series scheduled to air in October.