Social Impact Assessment in Mongolia: Development and Trends
Within the GobiFramework project, a model for sustainable infrastructure development, the paper presents a report on the development of a guide for the Government of Mongolia about Public Impact Assessment (IA) in the mining industry.
The proposed IA guide evaluates both positive and negative indicators including the fear of losing foreign investments, insufficient knowledge about IA, and conflicting interests of mining stakeholders including the State Agency for Mining. The authors reviewed environmental impact assessment procedures in Mongolia, consulted with stakeholders and conducted field research.
The findings concluded: (a) the ineffectiveness of previous approaches to solving the problems from 2013 to 2021; (b) social impacts should be systematically assessed using social science methods, considering the risks, influencing factors; and (c) impacts identified by the community being affected by the project, and the need to develop an appropriate mitigation plan that can be monitored by the community.