Ulaanbaatar city, March 25, 2022 - MCA-Mongolia is providing the Cost Recovery Technical Assistance to the Water Services Regulatory Commission of Mongolia (WSRC) under the Water Sector Sustainability Activity, one of the three main activities of the Mongolia Water Compact. The technical assistance aims to provide statistically significant household customer-level data to policy and decision-makers on affordability, willingness to pay for increased water tariffs, water consumption, and other socio-economic vulnerabilities related to water in Ulaanbaatar.

MCA-Mongolia organized a workshop among key stakeholders, including the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection (MLSP), Municipality of Ulaanbaatar (MUB), Water Services Regularity Commission (WSRC), Ulaanbaatar City Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (USUG), and Housing and Public Utilities Authority of Ulaanbaatar City (OSNAAUG) to provide findings and analysis of a quantitative survey of 4,975 households in nine districts of Ulaanbaatar, 55 focus group discussions with consumers, and interviews with water sector experts to assess water use, accessibility, and customer satisfaction concerning customers’ socio-economic status, ability, and willingness to pay for improved water supply and services among apartment and ger area household consumers.

The data and results of this study will be used as a basis for future research and help the government to develop and implement water-related social policies and targeted customer support programs. During the workshop, some of the international best practices for water sector customer assistance programs and existing similar social welfare or assistance programs were presented to the participants to encourage discussions about the potential design and implementation of Customer Assistance Programs (CAPs) in the water sector. Workshop participants were divided into groups to discuss some of the water sector affordability and other key questions related to CAP such as the existing legal and policy environment, administration and implementation, customer targeting and delivery, budgeting and financing as well as the necessity of CAP in the future.

At the end of the workshop, stakeholders expressed their appreciation to MCA-Mongolia for starting a discussion on an important issue of customer affordability in the water sector and taking active steps toward researching potential impacts on vulnerable groups, and identifying key policy level measures to address future affordability issues.

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The Government of Mongolia and the U.S. Millennium Challenge Corporation signed the $350 million Mongolia Water Compact on July 27, 2018. The Compact is funding major infrastructure projects, including the construction of new wellfields and two large plants - an Advanced Water Purification Plant and Wastewater Recycling Plant which will be the first of their kind in Mongolia. In addition, the Compact will invest in policy measures to create a financially and environmentally sustainable future for the water sector of Ulaanbaatar. By 2026, the water system in Ulaanbaatar will have been expanded to deliver 80% more drinking water, allowing for the city’s future expansion.