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Pioneer Project in Mongolia Supports Preschool and Disabled Children

MANILA, PHILIPPINES (8 August 2002) - Preschool and disabled children in Mongolia will be given a new lease of life through an SDR 10.806 million (US$14 million equivalent) concessional loan approved by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

The Second Education Development Project (SEDP) will be financed by the ADB loan as well as by grants totaling US$45 million equivalent from the Japanese government, a concessional loan of US$4.8 million equivalent from the Nordic Development Fund (NDF) and US$4.7 million equivalent from the Mongolian government.

"Our new project will improve or build new schools for over 100,000 kindergarten, primary and secondary school children, including 2,000 children with disabilities who will be brought into the system for the first time," says ADB project economist Robert Schoellhammer. "Formerly, children with disabilities were segregated and this pioneer component under ADB's social protection policy seeks to bring them into the mainstream to fulfill their potential and contribute productively to society."

The partnership between ADB, Japan and NDF will allow SEDP to benefit from their combined global experience, financial resources and technical expertise in education development. It also sets new standards for cooperation between development partners in Mongolia, allowing more efficient use of external funds and for nationwide coverage in developing high quality education services for all, in line with Mongolia's adherence to the Millennium Development Goals.

In the cities, the project will aim to increase the number of school places in the poorest areas, especially communities where families live in traditional gers (tents). In the rural areas, the project will provide dormitories so children from nomadic families can board at school.

As well as helping more children to go to school, the project will ensure that they receive a high quality education. This will be achieved through investing in teacher training, providing modern textbooks, as well as modernizing science programs and integrating ICT (information and communication technologies) into the curriculum.

The executing agency for the project, due to be completed by end 2007, is the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science.

The ADB loan will come from its Asian Development Fund with a repayment period of 32 years, including a grace period of 8 years. Interest will be charged at 1 percent per annum during the grace period and 1.5 percent per annum thereafter.

Read the full Report and Recommendation of the President to the Board of Directors on this proposed loan.

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