Draft

 

 

MEDIUM-TERM STRATEGY FOR DEVELOPMENT OF THE INFORMATION COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY SECTOR IN MONGOLIA

 

Considering that the information communications technology is the fundamental accelerator of Mongolia’s development in the 21st century and based on the “Information Communications Technology Development Concept for the Period up to 2010”, we have defined as follows the medium-term development strategy in this sector in order to establish a state policy and regulatory system and create a favorable environment for human and social, economic and business, political and legal developments.  

Main Objectives

1.      Policy and legal framework;

2.      Infrastructure development;

3.      Human capacity building;

4.      Business and private sector support.

 

1.      Policy and Legal Framework

 

1.1 Policy Framework

 

§         Establish policy, coordination and implementation institutions by the Government in order to create a favorable business environment for development of Information Communications Technology (ICT);

 

§         Develop and implement a specific program to alleviate the retardation (digital divide) of ICT in the rural areas, create opportunities to receive various services by providing universal equal access and increase demand (introduce in the rural areas internet access, distance education, tele-medicine as well as various services over IP);

 

§         Complete preparatory work for transition to e-government in order to develop open government, increase citizens’ involvement in the government and facilitate the government functionning. To achieve this, develop an appropriate infrastructure (public information network) and software, establish an electronic database of government information, develop procedures and formats for exchanging information, converting into an electronic form and make them ready for introduction;

 

§         Develop electronic information, contents and software on the Mongolian language;

 

§         Implement a policy for a systematic development of the national information contents to be placed on the Internet;

 

§         Renew and improve the existing health and social security information database, introduce the smart card system in the health and social security network;

 

§         Develop a policy for converting into an electronic format the services that support such business activities as customs, insurance, banking and finance, start gradual implementation of this policy;

 

§         Introduce electronic payments and settlements as well as electronic submissions of financial statements by providing all organizations and business entities with webpage and electronic addresses;

 

§         Develop and implement a policy to promote research and development in the ICT sector;

 

§         Develop a long-term master plan for development of the ICT sector;

 

§         Establish an ”ICT Development Fund” under the National Committee in order to develop the ICT sector, raise funds.

 

1.2 . Legal Framework

 

§         Introduce amendments and, if necessary, certain changes in the relevant laws and regulations and to bring them to international model laws in order to introduce the ICT and regulate the relations arising from the ICT services (e-government, e-commerce, electronic transactions, electronic signature, Internet use);

 

§         Introduce favorable and preferential remedies in the relevant laws that are designed to support domestic and foreign investments in the ICT sector;

 

§         Take actions to exempt computer and internet services, on-line trade and software development from the VAT;

 

§         Introduce amendments into the Intellectual Property Right Law that consider the specifics of the ICT products.

 

 

2.      Infrastructure Development

 

§         Continue steps towards transferring to the digital technology the countrywide telecommunications basic network placing special attention on rural access;

 

§         Introduce the Internet to social services such as secondary schools, hospitals, universities;

 

§         Start establishing public information resource centers and Internet centers in all cities and aimags as well as in certain feasible soum centers;

 

§         Start transfering of the Television and Broadcasting systems to the digital technology;

 

§         Establish Technopark or special zones with a favorable tax and infrastructure environment in order to support the development of export-oriented ICT products and services.

 

3. Human Capaciby Building

 

§         Develop and start implementing a national program on preparation of national workforce in the ICT sector. Support and improve the training base of universities which prepare specialists in ICT, establish training centers that will issue international recognized certificates similar to those issued by world leading companies, retrain and certify our specialists;

 

§         Develop relations between universities and enterprises/businesses for conducting research and development and preparing needed specialists;

 

§         Develop a program to intensify English language training, thus, preparing a pool of English speaking workforce;

 

§         Organize a campaign to provide universal basic education in ICT (computer literacy). Develop and support by economic, tax and other necessary policies the activities of training centers offering basic, intermediary and advance training courses in ICT, increase the number of such centers;

 

§         Provide funding for training government officials in ICT, conduct such training through private training centers;

 

§         Revise the curriculum of the ICT training programs, develop and implement them according to the current needs;

 

§         Implement policy actions directed towards using ICT, including the Internet, as the major tool for improving the training form at all levels of training, provide technical and technological support in this field to educational organizations;

 

§         Develop ICT based distant learning, establish a system of formal education by enrolling in available training schools. Establish and support training centers that provide training using electronic textbooks.

 

4. Business and Private Sector Support

 

§         Use ICT for increasing the competitiveness of the national industry and services;

 

§         In order to bring ICT products and services offered by the national companies upto the international standard, organize activities such as learning international experiences and participating in the traning programs on international standards, 

 

§         Organize programs for national companies to learn from the experience of foreign companies, enroll in training on international quality standards, certify them in order to bring software development and other ict products and services to the international standards;

 

§         Direct policy and regulation at developing and supporting in all aspects export-oriented software development, provide economic, technical, technological and other conditions;

 

§         Support start-up businesses in ICT, establish and operate incubation centers for raising-up and developing such businesses;

 

§         Activate domestic ICT market by promoting and intensifying an ICT consumption by the government;

 

§         Support business projects in the ICT sector, provide facilitations and favorable conditions and opportunities;

 

§         Develop G2B, B2B and B2C.