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Gustavus Adolphus College

Publication Date

Fall 2004

Program Name

Mongolia: Culture and Development

Abstract

In a feverish ten-hour van ride, my ISP topic and desire to study land privatization developed as I watched the landscape change with each passing kilometer. Sick from food poisoning and riding in the back of van resting on saddles, sleeping bags, and various boxes I realized I wanted to study something involving the economics of Mongolia. Mama Ulziii had recently mentioned the development of land laws and the corruption involving them sparking my flow of thoughts. As I lie in the back being jostled around, hitting my head, I was struck with the idea of discovering how an individual could make money by buying land in Mongolia. My initial, ill-informed, idea about the project was to study how foreigners could profit from purchasing large portions of Mongolian land. I soon realized in my first interview that land can not be owned by foreigners and my project changed to accommodate this new realization. The paper you are about to read is an exploration of how land privatization has developed, the problems that have arisen, and its potential impacts on the current and future economy. Land privatization is one of the most recent legislative reforms passed by the government to transition the economy out of centrally planned command economy and into a free market society. The laws have gone through several significant transitions as politicians seek to remedy problems and create the best environment for political and economic growth. Land reform is important in spurring this growth because it provides means to stimulate the economy as well as creating a sense of responsibility for citizens. Land privatization is a new topic and poorly researched because of its infancy, but it is important and will have significant impacts on both the economy and the nation.

Disciplines

Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration

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