Prime Minister S.Batbold continued his tour of the countryside on Monday, visiting three soums in Selenge aimag and one in Tuv aimag. He also attended a town hall-style forum in Mandal soum, which has 30,000 residents.

Many citizens asked that state services in the countryside be improved. For example, they said they would like funds from the Human Development Fund to be distributed through more banks.

The prime minister also received an update on the harvest. According to preliminary figures, 420,000 toms of wheat will be harvested this fall. But many farmers are worried about the price they will receive for the crop, due to competition from imported wheat. The prime minister said it is the Government’s policy that this year’s wheat prices will be no lower than last year’s.