Mongolia workshop

Mongolia workshop

Ulaanbaatar, /MONTSAME/ On November 20, a national workshop on TBT agreement /technical barrier to trade/ and SPS agreement /sanitary and phytosanitary measures/ started at the Foreign Ministry.

The event on non-tariff issues in the foreign trade is organized in accordance with request by the Government of Mongolia to the World Trade Organization.
The foreign trade turnover of Mongolia increases year by year.

In 2007, this amount exceeded USD four billion equaling to the gross domestic product. Today, Mongolia carries out trade relations with 114 countries. This attests a prominent role of the foreign trade in the economy of Mongolia.

In the last ten years, the mining industry developed rapidly to account for 70 percent of Mongolia's export. Thereby, significant changes occurred in the export structure. Rest of the export is raw materials and semi-finished products. Such products of animal origin as cashmere, hides and meat generate ten percent of the export.

One of the major factors that should be taken into account when doing business in Mongolia is that China upon its entry to WTO pursues an open trade policy toward foreigners. It becomes clearer that Russia will join WTO in the nearest future.

With a small market Mongolia, therefore, should understand well and apply multilateral trade agreements and carry out the trade meeting related agreements of WTO in order to provide its access to the foreign market. The above-mentioned two agreements are of vital importance for the export of products of animal and plant origin.

The two-day workshop is attended by about 50 representatives of ministries, agencies, higher schools, NGOs, and the private sector as well as researchers and scholars.

Ya.Indra