Prime Minister S.Batbold told donors and international
financial organizations at a meeting organized on Friday by city officials that
years ago foreigners used to called Ulaanbaatar Asia’s White Diva. Admitting
that would be very much a misnomer today, Batbold called for hard work to make Ulaanbaatar
a better city to live in. The first step would be to “identify the image that
modern Ulaanbaatar wants to present,” he said.

City officials revealed some data about  the Capital City, which is home to 1.114 million
Mongolians, or 40.5 percent of the total population. Of this number, 70 percent
are under 35. Half of the 210 secondary school buildings do not meet standards.
Many schools do not have sports facilities. Not one new kindergarten has been
built in the last 20 years.  Of the 274 now
in use, 65 do not have any open area where children can play, 37 have no water
supply. The number of children born every year in Ulaanbaatar is between 27,000
and 30,000 on an average, but only 40 percent of them attend kindergarten, and
the rest are cared for by grandparents.  
Deputy Mayor  Ts.Tsogzolmaa said
the city needed at least  64 new
kindergartens, particularly  for children
under 3.

USD20-25 million will be needed to set up kitchens to
prepare the midday meal for schools pupils, USD 17-20 million for new maternity
centers, USD$20-25 million for a diagnostic center, and USD1-2 million for
training of nurses and doctors.

The City General Manager Ts.Gankhuu said the population of
Ulaanbaatar has been annually increasing by 30 percent for the last 9 years. The
city’s infrastructure was built for a maximum of 500,000 residents and is
bursting at the seams. The MNT 120 billion received last year from the Development
Fund was spent on building new sewage and drainage.

The main road in the city is planned to extend from Gachuurt
 to the 22 post check, a length of 27 km.
USD185.5 million will be needed to build this and  the expense for other roads has been
estimated as USD458.1 million investment. There would be special roads for cyclists
and disable people.