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Mongolia
>> Regional Overview >> Mongolia Overview ACTIVITY DATA SHEET
PROGRAM: Mongolia
TITLE AND NUMBER: Consolidate Mongolia's Democratic Transition, 438-002
STATUS: Continuing
PLANNED FY 2001 OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: $3,000,000 ESF
PROPOSED FY 2002 OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: $3,000,000 ESF
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY 1996 ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: FY 2003Summary: USAID has supported Mongolia's democratic transition from the very beginning of its democratic movement. The first phase of USAID support helped open doors to the West and allowed Mongolians to study other democratic systems. The second phase improved the capabilities of Mongolia's new democratic institutions and fostered the development of robust and sustainable citizen-initiated, non-governmental organizations. A third phase began in FY 1999 with the approval of USAID's current strategic plan for Mongolia. Under this plan, USAID will help Mongolia complete its unfinished transition to democracy by improving the effectiveness of parliament and the judiciary and by establishing the foundation for a vigorous rural civil society. The current program includes activities to strengthen public institutional and civil society in rural areas; improve electoral, legislative and executive branch processes; and reform the judiciary.
Key Results: Two results are necessary to consolidate Mongolia's transition to democracy: establishing the foundation for effective rural civil society, and improving the effectiveness of parliament and the judiciary.
Performance and Prospects: The proposed FY 2001 obligation is $3,000,000. Mongolia's overall accomplishments in embracing democracy have been profound: (1) a new constitution has been put into effect that guarantees basic democratic rights and protection; (2) a representative parliament has been created; (3) six free and fair national-level elections have been held; and (4) a nascent community of citizen-initiated non-governmental organizations (NGOs) has emerged. USAID assistance has supported all these accomplishments.
During the past year significant strides were made in transforming institutional, community and individual behavior in rural Mongolia by improving the flow of information to these areas. With USAID assistance, a new business magazine and radio programming aimed at the Gobi region were initiated. These initiatives have generated consistently positive feedback from Mongolian decision-makers, community leaders and local citizens. USAID hopes to expand these initiatives to cover rural areas throughout Mongolia. In addition, the Gobi Initiative supports two important rural NGOs: The Foundation for Agricultural Development and the Mongolian Private Veterinarian Association.
Political Party Strengthening and Parliamentary Development: USAID proposes to obligate $260,000 in FY 2001 funds to continue International Republican Institute (IRI) assistance for programs to respond to the changing political climate in Mongolia. Through IRI, USAID is working to strengthen the organizational capacity of political parties and to educate new members of Parliament on democratic processes, separation of powers, and corruption issues. Funds also will be used to strengthen election laws and anti-corruption legislation. IRI activities seek to strengthen democratic representative processes throughout Mongolia, particularly in the countryside. During Mongolia's successful free and fair elections at the national and local levels, IRI was the only international institution to provide election monitoring. IRI also provided assistance to all major parties contesting the elections. These activities are expected to continue through FY 2001.
Strategic Judicial Reform: USAID proposes to obligate approximately $2,689,000 in FY 2001 for its Judicial Reform program. With significant USAID assistance, key elements of the GOM reached a consensus on a broad strategy to reform the judiciary. Building upon this consensus-the "Strategic Plan of the Justice System of Mongolia"-USAID began development of the Judicial Reform Program in March 2000. This program will operationalize the four core values of the Strategic Plan by promoting the development of judicial sector institutions that are effective and responsive, accountable, accessible, and independent. Initial activities will focus on strengthening court administration and case management; improving coordination and collaboration among Mongolia's justice system agencies; developing a centralized training system for legal professionals; developing a system of legal qualifying standards; and strengthening and enforcing ethical standards among judiciary and legal professionals. USAID will work closely with the Ministry of Justice in the implementation of this program and will coordinate its efforts with other donors undertaking related programs.
Training and Fellowships: In FY 2001 USAID will use approximately $50,000 to fund its ongoing Eisenhower Foundation Fellowship program. This program sends young, promising Mongolians interested in policy issues to the United States to study and meet with leading Americans in their respective fields.
Rural Institution Development: In FY 2001, USAID will obligate approximately $90,000 for the rural institution development components of the Agriculture Cooperation Development International/Volunteers in Overseas Cooperative Assistance (ACDI/VOCA) and Gobi Regional Growth Initiative programs. In FYs 2002 and 2003, USAID will continue to foster the development of institutions that support rural enterprise development, such as business associations, herders' associations and cooperatives. The goal is to have these institutions provide training and support to develop rural enterprises and agriculture, reduce obstacles to private sector growth, and promote alternative livelihoods for the rural poor.
Legislative Drafting Training: Approximately $100,000 in FY 2001 funds will be used to develop and present to a broad audience in Mongolia a course on effective legislative drafting.
Possible Adjustments to Plans: None.
Other Donor Programs: The Asian Development Bank, Germany, and the Soros Foundation are engaged in efforts to improve the quality of legal professionals. Germany and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the European Union, Japan, and several private voluntary organizations have active programs in rural areas. The UNDP may provide assistance to the Mongolian Parliament.
Principal Contractors, Grantees, or Agencies: USAID implements this activity through the following partners: The International Republican Institute; the National Center for State Courts; Mercy Corps International; and ACDI/VOCA. Principal Mongolian agencies include the Parliament, Ministry of Justice, General Council of Courts, and provincial governments in the Gobi region.
FY 2002 Performance Table
Mongolia: 438-002
Performance Measures:
Indicator FY97 (Actual) FY98 (Actual) FY99 (Actual) FY00 (Actual) FY00 (Plan) FY01 (Plan) FY02 (Plan) Indicator 1: Number of aimags that demonstrate improvement in the identification and implementation on joint local government/RCSO action plans. (FN 3) NA NA 3 4 4 4 6 Indicator 2: Steps taken towards the establishment of an independent judiciary. (FN 5) NA NA Step 1 Steps 2,3,&4 Steps 2,3,&4 NA NA Indicator 3: Rural civil society organizations (RCSOs) perceptions of meaningful engagement with parliament and government. (FN 1) NA NA 1.0 In the final July 1999 Performance Monitoring Plan USAID and Mercy Corps agreed to begin collecting data on this indicator in 2001. Thus, in next year's BJ the Mission hopes and expects to report that RCSOs achieved an average score of 2.5 or better. 1.5 2.5 3.0 Indicator 4: National elections (parliamentary and presidential) are fair and free and provide meaningful choice to voters. (FN 2) NA NA NA Yes Yes Yes NA Indicator 5: Number of soums that demonstrate improvement in the identification and implementation on joint local government/RCSO action plans. (FN 4) NA NA 4 5 10 16 32 Indicator Information:
Indicator Level (S) or (IR) Unit of Measure Source Indicator Description Indicator 1: IR Number of aimags Mercy Corps and partners "Demonstrated improvement" is measured by the following steps taken: 1) meetings of interested local actors determine action plan; 2) public and stakeholder education in support of the plan; 3) an action plan decided by a process of consensus; 4) allocation of responsibilities to subcommittees for aspects of the plan; 5) implementation of the plans; and 6) usage of the facility or services envisioned in the plan. Indicator 2: IR Number of steps taken Information will be derived from interviews with those associated with the USAID reform initiative and with other judges and lawyers as well as by reference to relevant documents. Steps include: 1) national conference on the independence of the judiciary; 2) strategic plan drawn up: 3) allocation of responsibilities to subcommittees; 4) action plans (including priorities) designed by subcommittees. Indicator 3: IR Scale of 1-5: 1=no responsiveness; 2=very limited response; 3=some two-way discussion; 4=substantive two-way interchange; 5=government seriously considers RCSOs in decision making. Mercy Corps and partners in cooperation with RCSOs. RCSOs refer to organizations with which USAID is working, have a rural focus, significant rural membership and have attempted to engage parliament and government in advocacy on issues of significance to their members. Each RCSO will be asked only about their own experiences. See scale above. Indicator 4: IR Yes/No IRI and the Mongolian central election commission "Fair and free" is broadly understood terminology that incorporates key principles including political parties are free to participate without hinderance from the state; that no party makes unfair use of the state apparatus and that parties provide meaningful choice to voters through offering clear issue-oriented policy platforms. Indicator 5: IR Number of soums Mercy Corps and partners "Demonstrated improvement" is measured by the following steps taken: 1) meetings of interested local actors determine action plan; 2) public and stakeholder education in support of the plan; 3) an action plan decided by a process of consensus; 4) allocation of responsibilities to subcommittees for aspects of the plan; 5) implementation of the plans; and 6) usage of the facility or services envisioned in the plan. Footnote 1: In the Mission's July 1999 Performance Monitor Plan USAID and Mercy Corps agreed to begin collecting data on this indicator in 2001. Thus, in next year's R4 the Mission hopes and expects to report that RCSOs achieved an average score of 2.5 or better.
Footnote 2: Mongolia successfully conducted a free and fair parliamentary election at the national level this year. A presidential election scheduled for May/June 2001.
The Mission expects to replace this indicator with another SO-level indicator after the 2001 results have been reported.
Footnote 3: The aimags are Umnugovi, Dundgovi, Govi-Altai, and Uvurhangai.
Footnote 4: The shortfall at the soum level is the result of the mid-year decision to re-orient the GREGI program to place greater emphasis on the role of the private sector (including micro-enterprise) and more effective range management practices in the development of the Gobi region. As a result, later this year, the Mission will consider selecting an alternative indicator to use in reporting progress under this IR.
The soums are located in Umnugovi, Dundgovi, Govi-Altai, and Uvurhangai aimags.
Footnote 5: The performance goals being monitored by this indicator have now been achieved. The Mission will develop one or more indicators more specifically focused on high-level results from the Mission's new Judicial Reform Program for inclusion in next year's R4.
U.S. Financing
(In thousands of dollars)
Obligations Expenditures Unliquidated Through September 30, 1999 1,442 DA 192 DA 1,250 DA 0 CSD 0 CSD 0 CSD 2,950 ESF 2,052 ESF 898 ESF 0 SEED 0 SEED 0 SEED 1,901 FSA 1,103 FSA 798 FSA 0 DFA 0 DFA 0 DFA Fiscal Year 2000 DA 1,231 DA 0 CSD CSD ESF 861 ESF 0 SEED 0 SEED 1,360 FSA 1,270 FSA 0 DFA 0 DFA Through September 30, 2000 1,442 DA 1,423 DA 19 DA 0 CSD 0 CSD 0 CSD 2,950 ESF 2,913 ESF 37 ESF 0 SEED SEED 0 SEED 3,261 FSA 2,373 FSA 888 FSA 0 DFA 0 DFA 0 DFA Prior Year Unobligated Funds 0 DA 0 CSD 0 ESF 0 SEED 0 FSA 0 DFA Planned Fiscal Year 2001 NOA 0 DA 0 CSD 3,000 ESF 0 SEED 0 FSA 0 DFA Total Planned Fiscal Year 2001 0 DA 0 CSD 3,000 ESF 0 SEED 0 FSA 0 DFA Future Obligations Est. Total Cost Proposed Fiscal Year 2002 NOA 0 DA 0 DA 1,442 DA 0 CSD 0 CSD 0 CSD 3,000 ESF 2790 ESF 11,740 ESF 0 FSA 0 SEED 0 SEED 0 DFA 0 FSA 3,261 FSA 0 DFA 0 DFA
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Last Updated on: May 29, 2002 |
