Some major urban projects are due to take place in the capital city of UB this year and the construction of a flyover is planned to start this March 29, Ulaanbaatar mayor Mr Munkhbayar said.

According to the mayor, Mongolia is in talks with the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to train Mongolian professionals in Japan in the field of road construction, construction engineering, and quake management.

 The Japanese ambassador to Mongolia Takuo Kidokoro said there could be a possibility for Mongolian professionals to enhance their training in Japan, and for Japan to conduct a bigger survey in Mongolia after inviting top level professionals from one of the Japanese prefectures and cities.

Mongolia’s request comes after the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) of Mongolia appealed for assistance in earthquake management.

Two moderate earthquakes occurred last January in Mongolia, and another one measuring M+3.6 on the Richter scale occurred this March 2 at 18.44 in the Bat-Ulzii soum in the Uvurkhangai province. Though no damages or victims resulted from these quakes, they are likely to occur again as Mongolian is located on seismically active zones.

While earthquakes cannot be prevented, the risks and damages resulting from these -- especially human death toll can be prevented by making buildings, bridges (...) earthquake proof.

Japan, who has a long history of earthquakes as it is located in an area where several continental and oceanic plates meet, could assist Mongolia in the construction of earthquakes resistant infrastructures and buildings as it has an extended knowledge in earthquake engineering.

Mongolia is expecting an economic boom in the near future, and there is much to do in the country’s urban centres which are lacking infrastructures, roads, and buildings to accommodate its growing economy and population.

It would be to the country’s advantage to take into consideration earthquake engineering as it plans major and necessary improvements to its urban infrastructures, and prevent an eventual human and economic disaster in the future.