Project Context
Climate change is intensifying Mongolia’s exposure to natural hazards such as floods, dzud, storms, and forest and steppe fires, with rising temperatures increasing drought and wildfire risks, amplifying extreme rainfall and flooding, and prolonging dry periods that degrade soils, exacerbate drought-dzud cycles, and expand fire-prone areas. In addition, Ulaanbaatar, where a large share of Mongolia’s population is concentrated, sits in a seismically active zone, compounding the country’s disaster risk profile.
Amid these escalating risks, Mongolia’s capacity to prevent and respond to emergencies remains inadequate and requires significant upgrading in equipment, capacity, and operational readiness. The fire and emergency response in the country is led by the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and its provincial and district branches (LEMA). The Government of Mongolia has made strengthening disaster risk management institutions a national priority under its 2024–2028 Action Plan, with a focus on expanding search-and-rescue and firefighting capabilities and improving community-level disaster preparedness.
ADB is supporting the Government in preparing the Strengthening Mongolia’s Disaster Resilience Capacity Project, with ICEM engaged to design the investment project across three outputs: enhanced firefighting and emergency response measures; a resilient, inclusive, and data-driven first responder system; and strengthened local capacity for disaster preparedness and response.
Objectives
The technical assistance aims to:
- Design an ADB-financed loan project to enhance Mongolia’s resilience to climate and disaster risks, covering improved wildfire response, strengthened search-and-rescue systems, and community-based disaster risk management, especially in high-risk areas.
- Support engineering design for a Training and Exercise Centre for NEMA, which will help establish the foundation for a more integrated and forward-looking national disaster resilience training.
