MN-UB SERV. IMPRMVT

closed

The general objectives of the Ulaanbaatar Services Improvement Project are to assist the Government to: (i) address the inequity of services between ger and formal housing areas, thereby improving the quality of life of the low-income population; (ii) restore levels and quality of water supply services in the Municipality and make that supply accessible to the ger areas; and (iii) develop more efficient and autonomous, performance-oriented institutions, with a view to eventual privatization. Project's specific objectives are to: (i) improve the quality, quantity and reliability of water supply; (ii) substantially lower the unit cost of water supply to ger areas; (iii) improve ger area infrastructure; (iv) arrest the deterioration in, and improve the reliability and quality of, the city water distribution system; (v) reduce water wastage, the production of nonrevenue-producing water, and water production costs; (vi) replace the current norm-based water and sanitation billing system to one that is quantity-based; and (vii) develop the water and sanitation company of Ulaanbaatar's (USAG's) capabilities for financial and operational management and convert it into a self-financing commercially-oriented public utility. The project will include: 1) physical investments such as strengthening of water supply distribution network, concrete reservoirs construction, insulated pipelines, water leakage and wastage reduction program, equipment and tools for maintenance and meter repair workshops, sewer observation and cleaning equipment, and Ger Area Infrastructure Upgrading Program; and 2) institutional component consisting of technical assistance in project management, institutional strengthening of USAG, studies reviewing the long-term development and planning of ger areas and definition of appropriate levels of public services, and development of and training in a computerized USAG billing and collection system for metered supplies.