Press Releases
MCC Begins Reallocation of Rail Project Funds
On Wednesday, September 9, 2009, the Millennium Challenge Corporation’s (MCC) Board of Directors approved to allocate $50 million to three ongoing projects under the Mongolia Compact: Health, Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), and Peri-urban Rangeland Management. The expansion of these projects will benefit thousands of Mongolians, who will gain access to health care, job training, and land rights for herding and agriculture.During the Sept. 9 meeting, the MCC Board of Directors, chaired by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, reviewed a number of issues for their information and approval, including the restructuring of the $285 million Mongolia Compact following the cancellation of the $188 million Rail project. The meeting confirmed that approximately $50 million will be reallocated from the canceled Rail project to expansion of the remaining projects – Health, TVET, and the Peri-urban rangeland management component of the Property Rights project.
The expansion of these projects is anticipated to provide significant additional benefits to Mongolians, including (i) up to 15 more aimags participating in the Health project’s efforts to combat non-communicable diseases and injuries; (ii) up to $15 million of additional equipment and training for TVET institutions to increase the capacity and quality of vocational education; and (iii) up to 310,000 hectares of additional land to be provided to herders for improved herding and agriculture. These projects are currently underway and will be completed by September 2013.
In the last meeting of the Board on June 10, 2009, the Rail project’s cancellation and the decision by MCC management to evaluate the Government of Mongolia’s (GOM) proposals for its replacement was presented. This followed the GOM’s notification to MCC in April 2009, of its desire to cease the implementation of the Rail project, due to circumstances beyond its control, and to reallocate the $188 million from that project to the remaining projects as well as to certain new projects. Through the summer, working together with groups from the relevant GOM Ministries and with MCA-Mongolia, MCC conducted its evaluation of the GOM’s proposals for the expansion projects and new projects.
While MCC has now approved the expansion of the current projects, it is continuing its evaluation of the proposals for the new projects, and will complete its evaluation by the end of the year.