NMNH Khoton 2011 Project produces valuable archeological data

The Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History (NMNH, a member of the NAMBC, last summer successfully completed  the first year of its two-year Mongolia-US “Khoton Project” at Khoton Nuur in the northern edge of the Altai Mountains in western Mongolia. The Mongolian and American team led by NMNH excavated 15 sites, which produced a large trove of data from a variety of settlement, ritual, and mortuary sites dating from Paleolithic to modern times. Hundreds more sites were located and described. The extensive data from Khoton provides archaeological context for the huge corpus of rock art in the surrounding hills. Mapping data will provide broad environmental context for archaeological excavations and rock art documentation.

Included in this year’s excavations were an Early Bronze Age ritual structure dating circa 2000 BC, a large Late Bronze Age khirigsuur burial with an associated deer stone dating circa 900 BC, a burial of an old toothless man and his sumptuous last meal circa 300 BC, and a Pazyryk warrior with gold medallions dating 20 BC. . For further information, contact Dr. William Fitzhugh at the NMNH, FITZHUGH@si.edu

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Pasyryk grave mound and pit being excavated

Mongolia booming economy, driven only  in part by rapid expansion in the mining sector, produced a sizzling 17.3% growth in real GDP for  2011 , according to preliminary estimates by Mongolia’s National Statistics Office. Mining was not the entire story: wholesale and retail  trade grew 42.5%, manufacturing 16%, construction 14.3%. According to the preliminary report, mining and quarrying showed 8.7% growth. This figure does not reflect the huge capital investments in mines, like Oyu Tolgoi LLC, that have not yet start producing.  Various estimates by foreign business observers and international organizations speculate that GDP growth in 2012 will be at least 20% and could soar as high as 46%.

Inflation is edging up as well. The Bank of Mongolia reported at the end of December 2011 that inflation in Ulaanbaatar increased 12.3% year-on-year; nationwide inflation was 10.2% year-on-year. The IMF calculated inflation as 14%.  Both the Bank of Mongolia and the IMF have warned the Government of Mongolia about inflationary risks. The IMF said that the rapid increases in government spending could push inflation above 18% in 2012 from 10.2% last year. In November 2011, the IMF cautioned that  macroeconomic policies were too expansionary, creating inflationary pressures and also increasing the economy’s vulnerability to external  shocks, such as sharp declines in global mineral prices. The IMF advised that the GoM’s first priority ought to be restraint in government spending and tightening monetary policies in order to  cool down  the overheated economy and provide some insurance against future commodity price shocks. The IMF estimated that in 2011, Mongolian Government spending jumped 50 percent in real terms.

Pebble crusher & ore tunnel at OT

OT coarse ore storage facility under construction

Registration is now open for NAMBC’s  22nd Annual General Meeting
At Marriott Courtyard Hotel in Ottawa, April 18-20, 2012

You can now register for the NAMBC’s 22nd Annual General Meeting on April 18-19-20, 2012, at the Courtyard by Marriott Hotel in the Byward Market shopping and entertainment district of Canada’s capital. Both members and non-members are welcome to attend. The meeting begins with an opening reception on the evening of Wednesday, April 18, following by a full day of meetings on Thursday, April 19, including continental breakfast and lunch. An optional field trip to historic sites and museums  – at no additional cost – is available for delegates on Friday, April 20. Our annual meetings alternate between Ottawa and Washington, DC.

Group rate rooms at the Marriott Courtyard are C$159 per night plus 13% Harmonized Sales Tax for single or double occupancy. Our 2010 annual meeting was at the same venue.  March 18 is the deadline to reserve rooms at the group rate. Rooms with one king bed or two queen beds can be reserved on-line through the links below. The group rate code is “NAM.”  If you have any difficulty, individual reservations can be made by calling the hotel at  (613) 241-1000 or 1- (800) 341-2210. A registration form link follows below:

Click here for registration form for 2012 Annual General Meeting (AGM)

Click here to reserve rooms with king bed at Courtyard Marriott in Ottawa

Click here to reserve rooms with two queen beds at Courtyard Marriott in Ottawa

Parliament Hill 

PM Stephen Harper met with PM S. Batbold in Ottawa on September 28, 2010

Tumentsogt Tsevegmid of GE joins NAMBC Board of Directors

The newest member of the NAMBC Board of Directors is Mr. Tumentsogt Tsevegmid, Chief Representative of General Electric International Inc. in Mongolia. NAMBC Chairman Ed Story welcomed Tumen’s election to the board by noting that “he will not only represent on our board one of the largest and most famous American corporations, a company founded by Thomas Edison, but is also a key player in increasing American exports to Mongolia and US investment.” Story noted that GE had recently signed a $US100 million agreement with Newcom Energy, another NAMBC member, to build Mongolia’s first wind farm.

Tumen serves as business liaison between GE and Mongolia, conducts market research and studies, and develops business opportunities in Mongolia. From 2007-2011, Tumentsogt worked at the World Bank, where he managed projects related to energy, water and renewables in both urban and rural settings. He provided technical support to a broad range of projects concerning energy, air pollution, water, and sanitation – including South Gobi infrastructure work – and supervised implementation of power projects in Vietnam.

Prior to joining the World Bank, Tumentsogt worked as chief of the International Cooperation Division at the Ministry of Fuel and Energy of Mongolia. He also worked for the State Privatization Commission, State Property Committee and Ministry of Infrastructure of Mongolia, where he was responsible for energy policy, management of state-owned assets in the energy sector, and regional energy cooperation. Previously, Tumen served as a commissioner at the Energy Regulatory Authority of Mongolia. Tumen holds a master’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Moscow Power Engineering Institute, and a Master of Public Affairs from Indiana University.

Tumentsogt Tsevegmid

Canadian and US Ambassadors candidly discuss investment climate
at 14th Annual NAMBC Investors Conference in Ulaanbaatar

Both the Canadian and American Ambassadors to Mongolia delivered candid and wide-ranging speeches at our 14th Annual Investors Conference in Ulaanbaatar, saluting Mongolia’s remarkable achievements  in simultaneously building a democracy and a free market economy but cautioning about the need for increased stability, transparency and investor protection. The full texts of both speeches can be downloaded below.

Both diplomats emphasized the close cooperation between the American and Canadian embassies in Ulaanbaatar and both underscored the urgent need for progress in concluding bilateral agreements that have been under negotiation for considerable periods of time. In his Keynote Address on October 5, Canadian Ambassador Greg Goldhawk stated that Canada looks forward to an early signing of the Canada-Mongolia FIPA (“Foreign Investment Protection and Promotion Agreement”) which has been in negotiation between Ottawa and Ulaanbaatar for over four years. Conclusion of the FIPA was a key element in the joint statement by Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Prime Minister Batbold during Batbold’s historic visit to Ottawa in September 2010, the first-ever visit to Canada by a  Mongolian Prime Minister. The US Government is similarly looking forward to the signing of a bilateral “Transparency Agreement,” which Prime Minister S. Batbold told US Vice President Joe Biden during Biden’s  visit to UB this summer could possibly be concluded this fall.

Ambassador Goldhawk emphasized the growing “richness” in the multiplying “threads of connection” between Mongolia and Canada. He discussed in detail five themes in these expanding interconnections – commerce, governance, development assistance, security and people-to-people contacts. But he stressed the importance of good governance as the key to continuing Mongolia’s economic expansion. Goldhawk said, “Mongolia won’t attract new, high-quality investor companies if the ones it has don’t feel that they have a stable environment in which to conduct their operations – if they feel that they have to conduct a rearguard defence every day to understand and react to the latest regulatory gyration or Parliamentary pronouncement.”

In his remarks on October 6, praising the progress Mongolia has made, US Ambassador Jonathan Addleton also noted that “the reality is that as an Embassy we are hearing many individual stories that  cast some doubt on Mongolia’s stated commitment to openness, transparency and a ‘level playing field’ when it comes to foreign investment.  Some of the stories that we hear touch on issues that might be considered ‘normal’ during a time of economic expansion, when the demands on Mongolia’s administrative apparatus are becoming acute and some level of frustration is understandable and even to be expected.  While certainly representing a challenge, these obstacles can over time be overcome. More worrisome, though, is that some of these stories relate to perceptions about the sanctity of contracts, the efficacy of the legal dispute system and the level of corruption faced by business, developments that could easily have a ‘chilling effect’ in the months and years ahead as far as the reality of doing business in Mongolia is concerned.”

Click here for full text of Ambassador Greg Goldhawk’s Keynote Address

Click here for full text of Ambassador Jonathan Addleton’s remarks

Amb. Greg Goldhawk
gave keynote address

US Ambassador
Jonathan Addleton

Biden meets PM Batbold, praises Mongolia as a "shining example"

During his brief visit to Ulaanbaatar on August 22, US Vice President Joe Biden praised Mongolia 's "remarkable" transition to democracy in the past 20 years and called Mongolia a "shining example for other nations in transition." Biden described Mongolia as "an emerging leader in the worldwide democratic movement, a responsible actor on the world stage and a close friend and partner of the United States ." Biden said he hoped Prime Minister S. Batbold and the Mongolian people consider his visit and President Obama's meeting in Washington in June with President Ts. Elbegdorj as "signs of how impressed we are at the progress you have already made. Those reciprocal visits show how important the relationship is to the US."

Biden emphasized the need "enhance economic ties," including completing work on a bilateral transparency agreement that "would make Mongolia an even more attractive destination for American foreign investment." Biden expressed US appreciation of  Mongolian contributions in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Prime Minister Batbold told Biden, "Your visit is the expression of the fact that U.S. recognizes Mongolia 's irreversible choice to develop democracy and the will of the Mongolian people to uphold legal forces to uphold democracy," Batbold also said, "We are grateful to the United States for continued support and economic assistance." He said his meeting with Biden was "very productive." Biden also met with President Elbegdorj, watched traditional Mongolian wrestling, tried his hand at archery and was presented with a horse, whom he named “Celtic.”

Click here for full text of official White House statement on Batbold-Biden meeting

Prime Minister Batbold and VP Joe Biden inspect honor guard

Biden meets wrestlers

NAMBC's "Canadian Alumni of Mongolia" program is organizing as an independent self-governing NGO in Canada

The NAMBC is pleased to announce that two of the earliest members of our "Canadian Alumni of Mongolia" program (CAM) are organizing it as an independent, non-profit, self-governing NGO in Canada. Any Mongolian citizens who attended or are now attending high school, college, university, or technical training in Canada are eligible for membership, even if you did not graduate. CAM will be open to Mongolians who are permanent residents of Canada or are living in Canada with student or other temporary visa status as well as Mongolians living in other countries.

CAM's objectives are to: (1) promote Canadian education for Mongolian students; (2) promote establishment of a professional and social network for Mongolians in Canada; (3) promote outstanding achievements of alumni; (4) promote the exchange of ideas, and provide opportunities for continuing education; and (5) connect Mongolian graduates with Canadian companies and businesses that operate in Mongolia.

For further information, contact one of the two Co-Chairs of CAM: Bulgan Orgilsaikhan  at the Forbes & Manhattan Investment Bank in Toronto, borgilsaikhan@forbesmanhattan.com, OR   Saruul Ayurzana, BA, CMA, Adjunct Professor at Algonquin College, Saruula@gmail.com

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