South Korea, in partnership with the OECD, has unveiled a comprehensive strategy to help Mongolia confront its growing water crisis, as climate pressures and overreliance on groundwater threaten supplies across the country.
The proposal, announced Wednesday at the Mongolian Agency for Meteorology and Environmental Monitoring in Ulan Bator, marks the culmination of the third-year phase of the “Investment Program to Enhance Sustainable Water Security in Asia.” The five-year initiative, jointly led by South Korea’s Ministry of Environment, the OECD, and the Asia Water Council, supports water resilience planning across eight Asian nations.
Mongolia’s economy is heavily dependent on water-intensive sectors such as mining, textiles, and agriculture, which together account for roughly 40% of national output. Yet the country remains reliant on groundwater — a finite resource increasingly strained by urban demand and climate change.
The report warns that without policy intervention, many regions — including the capital — could face acute water shortages before 2040.
To mitigate this, the report recommends phasing in water tariffs for currently exempt users, such as households and public institutions, and introducing national-level water allocation frameworks and abstraction caps in high-risk areas.
Further proposals include expanding public-private partnerships (PPPs) to boost investment in water infrastructure, modernizing hydrological monitoring systems, and implementing performance-based contracts for utilities to reduce leakage and improve supply reliability.
The initiative reflects South Korea’s growing role in shaping environmental policy and infrastructure development across Asia through multilateral cooperation.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)

Published Date:2025-05-29