Recap of the BCM Special Meeting with Honorary Consuls

The Business Council of Mongolia (BCM), in cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, co-organized a special meeting with honorary consuls on 7 September 2023 at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

A dedicated group of over 60 individuals from various countries currently serve as Honorary Consuls of Mongolia. The purpose of this special meeting was to facilitate communication with the honorary consuls and explore the potential for fostering expanded collaboration. The consuls in attendance varied greatly in their Mongolian experience, from some who have just arrived in Mongolia for the first time to those have been here for decades.

In his opening remarks, BCM Chairman Ts. Tumentsogt briefly touched on the various national programs the government is currently implementing, such as the New Recovery Policy and Vision 2050. On the diplomatic side, Mongolia had an active summer of visits by foreign leaders and high-level officials, as well as visits by Mongolian leaders to countries abroad, most notably Prime Minister Oyun-Erdene’s visit to Washington. Furthermore, the BCM views that Mongolia’s economic growth outlook is optimistic and stable.

Dendevsambuu “Onch” Onchinsuren, Founder and Managing Partner of Onch & Company, took over the podium to provide a review of Mongolia’s recent economic performance and inform consuls and attendees on vital information for doing business in Mongolia. Onch is an accounting professional with 20 years of experience managing her firm.

She highlighted in her presentation that the Mongolian economy grew 4.8% in 2022, driven in large part by resumption of coal exports. Other major contributors include expansion in construction and a sharp rise in agricultural production. Although the mining sector as a whole contracted in 2022, agriculture, services, and trade sectors made a significant contribution to GDP growth. Onch went on to elaborate on how to start a business in Mongolia, various tax rates and royalties, economic incentives, foreign investment regulations, and other key knowledge points.

Next up, Bryon Wilfert, who is the Honorary Consul of Mongolia in Canada, gave a rundown on the role and contributions of honorary consuls.

The primary role of honorary consuls is to develop economic, cultural, and commercial relations between the country they represent and the country where they serve. They promote trade, tech transfer, and investment. This is a different but key component of diplomatic power compared to traditional diplomacy exercised by embassies. As such, some honorary consuls are selected for their business acumen or experience in a certain field.

The international political landscape has changed such that engagement is no longer confined to state capitals. In the case of Canada, it is viewed that many of the nation’s core interests with the U.S. cannot be successfully managed through Washington. Some have suggested that Canadian representation in all 50 states in the U.S. could be a possibility in the future.
Honorary consuls will be increasingly called upon to do more as the role continues to evolve, especially in terms of globalization.

After the informative presentations, a panel discussion on doing business with Mongolia was moderated by BCM Vice-Chair B. Byambasaikhan. On the panel were:

• Agvaanluvsan Undraa, President of Green Buildings Council
• Bryon Wilfert, Honorary Consul of Mongolia in Canada
• Dendevsambuu Onchinsuren, Founder and Managing Partner of Onch & Company
• Dugar Jargalsaikhan, Chairman of Gund Investment LLC
• Khenchbish Amarjargal, CEO of Rio Tinto Mongolia
• Zanabazar Battushig, Deputy Director General of the Department of Foreign Trade, Ministry of Foreign Affairs

The Board of the BCM also boasts a couple of honorary consuls. For example, Mr. Byambasaikhan himself is an Honorary Consul for South Africa in Mongolia.

The panel discussion naturally evolved into a free-flowing exchange among the consuls, panelists, and business leaders. The panelists answered questions regarding potential double taxation agreements (DTAs) and taxes of relevance to foreign-invested entities, such as the beneficial ownership tax. Mongolia has DTAs with only six countries, but it seeking to expand this currently, including with Australia and India.

Several consuls brought up the topic of visa waivers: they say there is interest among their respective peoples to visit Mongolia for tourism, and a visa waiver would be a welcome incentive.

It seemed that many consuls in the room agreed that they receive very little information about Mongolia in general. Upon hearing this, the BCM Vice-Chair offered a free subscription to the BCM NewsWire to all the consuls in attendance.

After the meeting adjourned, the consuls were treated to a trip to the Gobi Cashmere factory organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the MFA would then host a reception the next day.

Further information on the meeting’s contents of discussion can be read in the editor’s notes linked below.
 

Links:

• Editor's notes (English)