Improving the Business Environment in Mongolia Through Public Opinions Surveys and Facilitating Public Private Dialogue

The project aimed to conduct a nationwide survey to gauge the perceptions of policy, business, and foreign investment in Mongolia, and to facilitate a series of public private dialogues (PPDs) on pertinent issues to help improve the business environment in Mongolia. The nationwide survey on Mongolian business environment was conducted in late November 2014 by the Sant Maral Foundation in Ulaanbaatar based on a representative sample of 1500 adult Mongolian citizens. The survey revealed that there is an overall negative perception of business environment in Mongolia, with the economy, unemployment, and corruption being the paramount concerns of Mongolians. Almost half of the respondents believed that the country was headed in the wrong direction, and only a fifth of respondents thought that the economy would improve in the next 6 months. The survey findings also showed that Mongolians predominantly regarded the U.S. as its Third Neighbor and believed that the U.S.-Mongolia commercial relations had significant potential. Seven out of ten Mongolians wanted to travel to the US, while more than 60% of Mongolians believed that U.S. firms operating in the country offered the best management, were good partners with the community, and had the best experience and quality. The survey results confirmed people's awareness that American companies offer the best technologies and practices for Mongolia, and Mongolians want U.S. companies to succeed in Mongolia as a balance to Russia and China. The project also facilitated a series of public private dialogues (PPDs) on pertinent issues to help improve the business environment in Mongolia. Four PPDs were organized, focusing on crucial issues identified with the participation of its members and business sector representatives. The first PPD focused on the results of the Nationwide Survey on Mongolian Business Environment, bringing together around 100 participants from the private and public sectors to engage in roundtable discussions on current business environment and identify opportunities to improve public and private partnership. Policy recommendations to the decision makers were developed on the basis of the feedbacks gathered from the PPD, including the strengthening of the scope and power of Invest Mongolia, setting up the public-private smart regulation committee, and developing clear time-bounded regulatory process maps on key regulatory issues.