Asian Development Bank

Ger Area Development Investment Program

General Description

The ADB is helping Mongolia upgrade basic infrastructure and services in “ger” or peri-urban areas of Ulaanbaatar, where a majority of the capital city’s poor residents live. The project will expand roads and improve water supply, sewerage systems, and heating services. It will help create well-developed subcenters to provide jobs, housing, economic opportunities, and a sustainable living environment.

The project team will focus in particular on the urban renewal, community engagement, policy aspects and capacity building elements of the project in order to maximise the cost efficiency and the potential to improve the quality of life of residents as part of the GADIP, tranche 1 project.

My consultancy role in this project is to intervene as an expert in the Mongolian real estate sector and as a land use specialist with a particular focus on the creation of a business plan for the creation of a Sub-Centre Redevelopment Agency, on macro policy recommendations, on land use proposals, community empowerment and private sector engagement.

October 2015 - March 2017, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Real Estate / Land Use Expert

Asian Development Bank

Urban Redevelopment and Affordable Housing

General Description

This project is a pre-feasibility study focused on developing the quality of life of Ulaanbaatar ger district residents through the delivery of well-planned and well-developed mixed use and mixed income urban areas. It supports the implementation of the city urban master plan and ongoing initiatives from the GoM, the MUB, the private sector, the IFI's and the communities.

The project will include the provision of an ADB sovereign loan to the MUB, a NSO loan to a state entity such as TOSK as well as a number of private sector loans to property developers totalling approximately 380 Million USD in disbursements.

My consultancy role in this project is to intervene as an expert in the Mongolian real estate sector with a particular focus on the private sector involvement, the land and property laws of Mongolia as well as developing financial schemes for the implementation of affordable housing.

August 2015 - May 2017, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Real Estate / Private Sector and Land Development Specialist

European Bank of Reconstruction and Development

RSF DD and Support Project

General Description

The Risk Sharing Facility (“RSF” or the “Facility”, formerly known as “MCFF”) aims to assist local partner banks (“PBs”) in meeting the financing needs of successful small and medium-sized enterprises that have begun to outgrow the countries’ financial sector. Local banks’ ability to support the growth of such companies is often constrained by single-borrower exposure limits imposed by central banks or by their own internal guidelines that aim to manage loan portfolio concentration. Through the Facility, the Bank offers PBs funded or unfunded risk-participation schemes in US dollars, Euro or local currency, under which the EBRD will take usually 50 percent (exceptionally up to 65 percent) of the risk of sub-loans extended by the PBs under this Facility. The sub-loans are made only to eligible clients that meet pre-agreed eligibility criteria. Sub-loans under the Facility can amount to up to €20 million and have a maximum tenor of 10 years.

My consultancy role in this project is to work with Khan Bank and Xac Bank's SME development teams to source and develop potential clients who could benefit from the RSF facility. Once a client was sourced, a due diligence process would take place followed by the preparation of "Exhibits A through C" which would then be presented to the EBRD's credit committee for approval.

June 2016 - January 2017, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Lead Consultant

State Housing Corporation

TOSK Investment Document

General Description

The State Housing Corporation of Mongolia is the primary Government Agency responsible with the provision of affordable and accessible housing for the people of Mongolia. It has built over 10,000 units nationally with the majority of those projects within Ulaanbaatar. The financing of those projects is generally in the form of concessionary sovereign guaranteed loan for construction from third party countries.

In Ulaanbaatar, TOSK has 3 large project sites, amongst which is the G Block in district 9 (north of the construction market) and the Buyant Ukhaa site close to the existing airport. The Management of TOSK was keen to get funding assistance from Turkey and China to help finance the construction of those projects.

M.A.D.'s role was to create a set of comprehensive "bankable" investment documents supporting the two projects in order to obtain financing from the EXIM banks of Turkey and China. We created feasibility studies, market research, development appraisal, financial analysis, environmental impact assessments, marketing plans and Investment Memorandum documents for each of the projects. Both projects were presented by M.A.D. to representative of both banks and both were eventually funded to the tune of 350Million USD.

May 2015 - January 2016, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Lead Consultant

Samsung Corporation

Mongolian Construction Price Index

General Description

Samsung Corporation is the primary contractor for the New Ulaanbaatar Airport Project set to inaugurated in early 2018. It is a project of such considerable size that it had an impact on construction prices and the market. Samsung thus contracted M.A.D. to carry out a detailed analysis for the past 4 years of construction prices.

The airport is designed with the capacity of up to three million passengers per year, and has sufficient space for a possible future expansion of up to twelve million passengers yearly. It will also be equipped with a 24-hour all-weather air traffic control system. It is assumed that on average, the airport will take roughly 2.5 million passengers annually. In comparison, the current airport (Chinggis Khaan International Airport, the largest airport in Mongolia) serves about 900,000 passengers per year (2011 figures). Cargo capacity is set to increase 10-fold.

Our role was to gather prices for a 4 year period for a basket of over 200 items + labour prices. This was complied into a comprehensive construction price index which continues to be used by Samsung in negotiating its supply contracts and its partnership with the Ministry of Urban Development and Construction

September 2015 - January 2016, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Team Leader

State Great Khuraal (Parliament of Mongolia)

Mongolian Urban Redevelopment Law Analysis

General Description

The New Urban Redevelopment Law of Mongolia came into effect in 2016. Its aim is to reform the regulations surrounding the expropriation and redevelopment of certain areas of urban Ulaanbaatar where the Municipality wanted to develop infrastructure or to build mid to high density housing. This would be the first comprehensive law on eminent domain in Mongolia and was one of the most controversial acts of Parliament. The impacts of this law would be far reaching and it was thus critical that various stakeholder groups were consulted and that the law went through a series of public and private consultations so that Members of Parliament could be informed of all its consequences when debating its implementation.

We carried out extensive stakeholder interviews, desktop research and legal consultations to identify and quantify the potential impacts and consequences of the proposed law. This was then presented in detail to members of parliament prior to deliberations on the parliamentary floor.

June 2015 - December 2015, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Lead Consultant

Asian Development Bank

Ulaanbaatar Urban Planning Improvement Project

General Description

Rapid urbanisation is taking place in Ulaanbaatar, but strategic urban infrastructure and planning are inadequate. Municipality of Ulaanbaatar (MUB) needs to build its capacity to plan, regulate, and implement its urban development to overcome long-term economic, social, and environmental problems; and to improve the people’s quality of life. Parliamentary approval of the Ulaanbaatar Urban Development Master Plan 2030 in February 2013 and adoption of new laws to regulate the urban development of Ulaanbaatar provided a framework for the city’s development. However, the existing technical capacity and institutional arrangements for urban planning in the MUB make it difficult to implement the master plan effectively, and are inadequate for the urban development requirements of the rapidly growing city.

My consultancy role in this project was to monitor interventions, carry out demand and need analysis of all participants, do a series of exit interviews, propose changes to the project delivery format, assist in co-ordinating stakeholders, asses the understanding and final product for the MUB, verify adherence to KPI's and report to ADB HQ on progress of the project implementation and its potential impact.

September 2014 - November 2015, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Real Estate / Land Use Expert

World Bank

Ulaanbaatar Clean Air Project - Feasibility Study of a City Greening Investment Project

General Description

This project inscribes itself within the wider "clean air project" and examines the financial feasibility of promoting the "greenification" of Ulaanbaatar and its potential health benefits. Greening corresponds to a strong expectation of Ulaanbaatar residents, eager to see their living environment improved. Greening can also provide environmental services by contributing to water resource protection and to reduction of suspended air pollution. This project envisages how to expand greening in Ulaanbaatar in the coming year in accordance with the main directions provided by the Master Plan 2030.

My consultancy role in this project was to intervene in a financial implementation, project monitoring and feasibility study elements of the project. In addition to which I was in charge of the co-ordination and management of all the national consultants as well as final edits and translations of the final reports.

July 2015 - November 2015, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Monitoring / Financial Implementation

The Asia Foundation

The informal economy in Ulaanbaatar: Policy options to promote growth in the ger areas

General Description

The Asia Foundation, in co-operation with Australian Aid launched a "Working Paper" study in the state of the informal economy in the ger districts of Ulaanbaatar. This document focuses on the economic environment in the capital’s unplanned settlements. With city leadership now fully committed to accelerating inclusive growth to spur overall development, greater knowledge of the informal economy and how it might develop is essential. Yet, minimal research has been done in recent years on the country’s informal economy, and virtually none in Ulaanbaatar. This paper takes a step toward addressing this important gap, updating some of what is understood about the informal sector, how it engages with the formal economy, and how the sector is currently governed in Ulaanbaatar. In doing so, the authors provide preliminary policy recommendations for donors and local actors to consider.

M.A.D. was contracted to provide research, carry out surveys, develop policy ideas and contribute to the writing and edition of the working paper on the informal economy. We carried out extensive on the ground research through interviews, focus groups and questionnaires as well as comprehensive desktop research on the perceptions and realities of informal businesses in the ger districts of Ulaanbaatar. This was further supported by an extensive analysis of examples of best practices in other markets and their applicability to the Mongolian context.

May 2015 - October 2015, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Mixed Method Research & Analysis / Community Engagement

World Bank

Capacity Building to implement the District Plan in Ulaanbaatar & Preparation of a District Development Plan

General Description

The overall objective of the project is to enhance the role of the Bayanzurkh District in Ulaanbaatar regarding its urban planning capacity – within its legal competences and resources – by improving coordination and cooperation with the Municipality. More specifically, this project aims to provide the District with additional capabilities and tools to actively relay and justify its needs and demands towards the Municipality (that is the decision-maker) and hence play a more active role in guiding the urban planning process. This inscribes itself within the general decentralisation efforts being carried out by the Municipality of Ulaanbaatar.

In this project I was the Deputy Team Leader as well as the Housing & Land expert. My responsibilities included the design and implementation of the capacity building program, carrying out a number of lectures, workshops and seminars as well as contributing to the district development plan.

May 2014 - March 2015, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Deputy Team Leader & Housing / Land Expert

World Bank

Ulaanbaatar Urban Services Provision

General Description

Mongolia has made good progress in navigating a simultaneous political and economic transition over the past two decades. With GDP growth at over 15 percent, it is one of East Asia’s fastest growing economies. Despite the unprecedented growth of the past decade, job creation only increased by 11 percent mainly because the mining industry is not labor intensive. Inequality – in opportunities and in outcomes – is likely to rise as the economy relies more and more on the mining sector. Population and economic growth have become increasingly concentrated in Ulaanbaatar (UB), the Capital City. It generates 65 percent of the country’s GDP, 85 percent of power, and 50 percent of investments. With concerns over rising inequality, the city is facing increasing pressure to maintain and expand service provision (especially infrastructure), to ensure that all citizens are given opportunities to share in economic growth. While urbanisation in Mongolia presents an enormous opportunity for promoting prosperity, ensuring that such growth is shared equitably and that the urban poor benefit from economic growth will be crucial for creating inclusive cities.

The World Bank is conducting an assessment of urban poverty and service delivery in Ulaanbaatar (UB) under work programs on Service Delivery in Ulaanbaatar (P146146) & AAA on Inclusive Cities in EAP (P147592). The study will aim to create a systematic socio-economic profile of urban poor in UB, better understand their living conditions, identify gaps and inequities in service provision and access, identify the mechanisms that perpetuate vulnerability of urban poor, and assess existing policies and programs aimed at urban poverty reduction. The full scope of the study will apply a mixed-methods approach, with a combination of qualitative, survey and spatial components. The aim of the joint work will be twofold: (i) to better understand the nature and mechanisms of the challenges faced by urban poor in UB city; and (ii) drawing on international experience, to propose policies and priority areas of intervention that will enable UB City to enhance service delivery and e ectively address the vulnerabilities of urban poor.

As one component of the above-mentioned Technical Assistance, this assignment consists of fieldwork (user/exit surveys, key informant interviews, data gathering) and analysis of the coverage, quality and equity of the provision of:

public transportation services across the city;
social welfare services (e.g., orphans);
street lighting; and
land and property titling and registration, respectively.

M.A.D. won the bid to carry out this project in its entirety. I managed the team that carried out extensive surveys over a 4 month period on the 4 key target areas, we also did over a 100 in-depth open interviews and 500 close ended questionnaires. I supervised the analysis and drew conclusions from the statistical data. We delivered a final report to the World Bank in October 2014 and continued to work on further developing this project through a series of detailed policy recommendations.

May 2014 - October 2014, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Project Management / Extensive Research & Data Gathering / Analysis

Ministry of Urban Development and Construction

State Housing Corporation Reform

General Description

TOSK, the State Housing Corporation of Mongolia is a large Government Agency tasked with the provision (amongst other things) of affordable housing to the people of Mongolia with the majority of its projects today located within the Ulaanbaatar perimeter. Those projects mostly consist of large scale (500 units +) residential compounds of high rise, single use towers, built in block form to reduce costs and speed up construction time.

Despite the success of the various projects it undertook, it became clear to the Ministry of Urban Development and Construction (the "parent" agency of TOSK) that reform was needed to improve the financial efficiency of the agency and improve the end product which was being delivered to TOSK's clients.

The Minister appointed M.A.D. to carry out an extensive analysis of TOSK, its operations, its processes and the products it delivered. The analysis included a desktop review of its operations, extensive interviews at TOSK and of various key stakeholders, perception surveys of residents of projects as well as detailed primary quantitative research on the ground of various project sites throughout Mongolia. A detailed report was delivered to the Minister which included policy recommendations, an actionable reform agenda, key metrics and a variety of schemes to improve the financial viability of the projects.

September 2015 - January 2016, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Team Leader

Research Projects