Minister of Finance B.Javkhlan handed over the bill on amendment to the Rapid Response Financing Program between Mongolia and the Asian Development Bank to Speaker of Parliament G.Zandanshatar on May 17.

The amendment will provide an additional 170 million USD in soft loans. The loan will have a 25-year term, with a grace period of five years and an annual interest rate will be 2 percent.

Within the program, the following measures will be taken.

• To support the implementation of the Child Money Program, implement social welfare programs and activities in the target group, and eliminate duplication.

• To implement measures to reduce the negative impact of the pandemic on the economy and the state budget, support the implementation of measures to strengthen the preparedness of the health sector, and finance the budget deficit.

The program approved 300 million USD in 2020, and of this, 200 million USD is for two budget support programs, 26.4 million USD for a project to reduce the negative impact on vulnerable groups, and 30 million USD for the purchase of emergency equipment for the public health sector. The remaining funding will be used to support the COVID-19 vaccination project.

The General Rapid Response Financing Program was approved by Parliament in April 2020. The purpose of this program is to support the response to the COVID-19 pandemic and to reduce its socio-economic impact.