Ulaanbaatar
Capital city budget manual designed for citizens released for the first time
Society
Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/ On May 29, the Municipality of Ulaanbaatar organized a launching event to present the first ever “Capital City Citizens’ Budget 2019” manual at the Municipality.
The manual was developed with support of the World Bank and
the Gesellschaft fuer Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and provides
information about the capital city’s budget for 2019, including capital
investment budgets, as well as Ulaanbaatar city’s development priorities. It is
a user-friendly and accessible overview that does not only provide the data but
also explanatory illustrations, infographics and descriptions.
Around 46 percent of Mongolia’s total population
lives in the capital city of Ulaanbaatar, the city also makes up 64.7 percent
of the national GDP. The Governor of the Capital city and Mayor of Ulaanbaatar S.Amarsaikhan noted
that he is happy to deliver this Citizen’s Budget manual at a time when
residents of Ulaanbaatar city are growing in financial literacy and
responsibility, and have demonstrated an increasing interest in the city’s
budget revenues and expenditures, as well as interest in contributing in the city’s
development.
The director of Institute for National Strategy, B.Munkhsoyol, a civil society representative, highlighted the importance of
the manual, by stating that, “One of the values of the open society is engaging
citizens in decision-making processes. The involvement of citizens in the
budgeting process is vital in making budget spending optimal and efficient, and
monitoring corruption. The “Citizens’ Budget of the Capital City 2019” manual issued
by the Governor’s Office of the Capital City is invaluable in that it
introduces the budget information to the citizens in a clear and simple way.”
The Citizens’ Budget manual can be downloaded
online from www.ulaanbaatar.mn, www.irgen-tur.mn websites.
The Deputy Governor of Ulaanbaatar city Sh.Ankhmaa, the
World Bank Country Manager Andrei Mikhnev, Director of Cooperation, SDC
Mongolia Gabriella Spirli and the Director of Energy Efficient Building
Refurbishment in Mongolia Project, GIZ Mongolia, David Hancock attended the
event and made formal addresses.
The manual was developed with the support of SDC,
and within the scope of the Energy Efficient Building Refurbishment in Mongolia
Project (EEP) implemented by GIZ through funding of the German Federal
Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ),
as well as Mainstreaming Social Accountability in Mongolia (MASAM) project
of the World Bank.
