Chinese Government provides RMB 110 million grant for Gobi Bear Habitat Management and Gobi Bear Breeding Project

On September 28, 2016, China’s Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) instructed the Chinese Academy of Forestry to dispatch a team of 9 technical experts to Mongolia to conduct a feasibility study on a Gobi Bear technical assistance project. Then, on On October 10, 2016, the team of technical experts signed a feasibility study completion document (Chinese name for agreement: 会谈纪要) with their Mongolian counterparts. On May 12, 2017, the Chinese Government and the Government of Mongolia signed letters of exchange, which committed RMB 110 million of grant funding over a three-year period for the Gobi Bear Habitat Management and Gobi Bear Breeding Project. The purpose of the project is to (a) study the diet and habitat of Gobi bears, and (b) use the study findings to provide technical support and equipment to improve the habitat and supporting biodiversity in Part A of the Great Gobi Strictly Protected Area within Tsogt soum and Gobi-Altai aimag (detailed locational coordinates: 43.24, 97.43). The Institute of Forest Ecology of the Chinese Academy of Forestry is responsible for project implementation. A project implementation agreement was signed on April 18, 2018. The project officially commenced on August 17, 2018. Then, on April 15, 2019, a batch of technical equipment (worth RMB 660,143) was delivered to the Government of Mongolia’s Ministry of Nature, Environment and Tourism. The purpose of the equipment was to support the monitoring of Gobi bears in the Great Gobi Strictly Protected Area. The originally scheduled project implementation start and end dates were March 18, 2019 and July 31, 2021.

Additional details

1. This project is also known as the Mongolian Gobi Bear Technical Assistance Project. The Chinese project title is 援蒙古国戈壁熊保护技术援助项目. The Mongolian project title is Монгол Улсын говийн мазаалай баавгайг хамгаалах техникийн туслалцаа үзүүлэх төсөл or МОНГОЛ УЛСЫН ГОВИЙН МАЗААЛАЙ БААВГАЙГ ХАМГААЛАХ ЧИГЛЭЛЭЭР ТЕХНИКИЙН ТУСЛАЛЦАА ҮЗҮҮЛЭХ. 2. According to several official sources, the RMB 110 million grant commitment was earmarked for two separate projects: the Gobi Bear Breeding Project (“Зориудын аргаар мазаалай баавгайг үржүүлэх” төсөл) and the Gobi Bear Habitat Management Project (“Мазаалай баавгайн амьдрах орчны нөхцөлийг сайжруулах” төсөл). This issue merits further investigation. 3. The April 18, 2018 project implementation agreement referred to an RMB 11.63 million grant for the Gobi Bear Technical Assistance Project. Under the agreement, the Chinese side agreed to cooperate with the Mongolian side to conduct a study on the Gobi bear habitat management project, a study on the ecological quality of the Gobi bear habitat, a study on food plant populations, and a biodiversity monitoring study. The project also includes on-site training for technicians and professionals in the Mongolian Great Gobi Special Protected Area, two trainings in China, equipment and materials needed for the project, and 20 tons of wheat seeds per year for Gobi bear feed during the 3-year project. For the time being, we assume that the RMB 11.63 million grant is not a separate grant commitment from the RMB 110 million grant commitment. 4. Gobi bears, or Mazaalai, mainly eat berries, roots, other plants, insects and sometimes rodents. The Gobi bear — with a current population of merely 28 — is the world's rarest due to insufficient food and distinct biological features. Their habitats and water resources have been shrinking dramatically compared to the 1950s and 1960s because of climate change, according to the Mongolian government. The government and NGOs have taken multiple measures to protect Mazaalai, one of the world's most endangered species. In 2014, the Mongolian government adopted a national program called Mazaalai to save the Gobi bears. Under the program, the government places 20 tons of dietary supplements for the bears in 27 feeding stations in the Gobi Desert every year.

Number of official sources

9

Number of total sources

23