Parliament yesterday began the
first reading of the draft combined budget 2011, which includes the State
budget, the Social Insurance Fund budget, the Human Development Fund (HDF) budget,
and the local budget. The total income has been put at MNT3 trillion and 56.9
billion, or 39% of GDP, and the total expenditure at MNT3 trillion and 251.6
billion, or 41.5% of GDP. The total budget deficit is thus MNT194.7 billion or
2.5% of GDP. Revenue has been calculated on the basis that copper price will be
USD8,425/ton, washed coal USD128/ton and gold USD1,250/oz.

The budget is larger by MNT1 trillion than the 2010 budget. The measures meant
to fulfill elections promises — like 
allocation of MNT21,000 to every citizen every month, and paying
MNT500,000 as every university and institute students’ fees – will cost MNT800
billion and will be transferred to the State Fund from the HDF. This is about
25% of the combined budget 2011 and would have been enough to build a well-equipped
medical complex in 20 aimags or 70 secondary schools, complained opposition MPs.