Mongolia - Property Rights - Land Registration System

Reference ID

DDI-MCC-MNG-CB-RSPS-2020-v2

Year

2008 - 2017

Country

Mongolia

Producer(s)

The Cloudburst Group

Sponsor(s)

Millennium Challenge Corporation - MCC -

Metadata

Documentation in PDF

Created on

Jan 06, 2015

Last modified

Oct 13, 2020

Page views

10095

Downloads

3419

Overview

Identification

Country

Mongolia

Evaluation Title

Property Rights - Land Registration System

Evaluation Type

Independent Evaluation

ID Number

DDI-MCC-MNG-CB-RSPS-2020-v2

Version

Version Description

- v01: Edited, anonymous dataset for public distribution.

Overview

Abstract

Evaluation design: Performance Evaluation

This is a follow-up endline evaluation of the Registry Systems Strengthening component of the Mongolia Compact's Property Registration Project (PRP). It adapts an existing evaluation design developed by Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA), which was used for baseline data collection in 2013. Five research questions motivate the Registry Systems Process Study (RSPS) follow-up evaluation:

1) Did the land registry system-strengthening component of the PRP lead to improvement in the quality of property registration services? What was the significance of the land registry system-strengthening component of the PRP?

2) Did the land registry system-strengthening component of the PRP result in changes in the time or cost of land transactions?

3) Did the land registry system-strengthening component of the PRP lead to increases in demand and volume of formal land transactions, including land registration and related transfers at the property registry, and mortgages at banks?

4) What were the characteristics of those who conducted formal land transactions before and after the introduction of ePRS? Were there changes in the gender ratio of landowners? Were there any differences in results for parcels held by women and men?

This follow-up evaluation draws upon six main sources of primary and secondary data to answer the evaluation questions: ePRS land transaction data, pre-ePRS historic land transaction data, a banking customer survey, structured key informant interviews (KIIs) with GASR registrars and bank loan officers, focus group discussions (FGDs) with key beneficiary groups, and open-ended KIIs with key project stakeholders. In addition, the evaluation produces a final ERR calculation of this activity of the PRP based on the main expected benefit streams.

The PRP took place from 2008 to 2013. Baseline data was collected from 2010 to 2013 by IPA. This follow-up endline evaluation was collected from 2018 to 2019, capturing data from approximately five years after the close of project activities.

Evaluation Methodology

Pre-Post

Units of Analysis

The evaluation tracks changes at the levels of both 1) land transactions and 2) the individuals conducting them across various user groups.

The evaluation collected land administrative data at the General State Registry (GASR) at the level of the land transaction to compare elapsed times and characteristics of individuals/properties pre- and post-introduction of the ePRS system.

In addition to the transaction-level data, individual-level data was collected for several critical user groups: individuals applying for a mortgage or loan using property as collateral at banks, GASR registrars, loan officers, and individuals in areas targeted by decentralization activities. Collecting quantitative and qualitative information about individual users and their properties will also allow the evaluation team to compare the demographic characteristics of people engaging in formal land transactions and their properties before and after the introduction of ePRS, both in a systematic fashion through their inclusion in statistical models and also to descriptively understand how service providers and users understand any shifts in the kinds of customers accessing these services.

Kind of Data

Sample survey data [ssd]

Questionnaires

The banking customer survey questionnaire serves as the main source of information about changes over time in the average time and cost to obtain a loan and the types of loans obtained between the 1st and 2nd round banking customer surveys. The banking customer survey is designed to track eligible loan applications (land or property based transactions, such as mortgages or collateralized loans) from submission to approval, including the processing of document requests to GASR, to provide a picture of how the improvements within GASR (ePRS, document digitization) translate into time savings when accessing credit.

The GASR structured KII questionnaire was administered to all GASR registrars employed at each district and province office within the MCA project area (Ulaanbaatar, Erdenet, Darkhan, Arvaikheer, Uliastai, Khovd, Zuunmod, Undurkhaan and Choibalsan) to understand the effects of the PRP infrastructure and capacity building interventions, including ePRS, as comprehensively as possible.

Another loan officer structured KII questionnaire was administered to loan officers in Ulaanbaatar to understand the effects of registry strengthening on the lending process and general trends in the lending environment.

FGDs with subgroups of interest are proposed in each of the four districts covered by the decentralization activities in Ulaanbaatar: with women, with residents engaging in land transactions (both men and women), with ger area residents (both men and women), with loan officers (both men and women), and with real estate agents (both men and women).

The open-ended KII with key PRP stakeholders will provide additional nuanced context information about PRP implementation and changes since the end of the project.

Geographic Coverage

Different PRP components had different levels of geographic coverage across Ulaanbaatar and the rest of Mongolia.

The geospatial upgrades provided to Administration for Land Administration and Management, Geodesy and Cartography (ALAMGaC) was intended to improve cadastral mapping capabilities nationally. Additionally, although significantly delayed, the recommended legislative changes passed by the government likely had nationwide impacts. Finally, to increase the capacity of GASR to provide efficient services in a cost-effective and accountable manner nationwide, the project worked to improve GASR's central business processes by streamlining operational and administrative functions and strengthening financial and human resources capacity.

Physical improvements were made to the under-resourced Property Rights Registration Department's (which eventually merged into GASR) Central Office space, new offices were established in four districts of Ulaanbaatar (Baganuur, Bayanzurkh, Chingeltei, and Songinokhairkhan), and upgrades were made to state registry offices in eight regional centers around the country [City of Erdenet (Orkhon aimag); City of Darkhan (Darkhan-Uul aimag); City of Arvaikheer (Uvurkhangai aimag); City of Uliastai (Zavkhan aimag); City of Khovd (Khovd aimag); City of Zuunmod (Tuv aimag); City of Undurkhaan (Khentii aimag); and City of Choibalsan (Dornod aimag)]. The document digitization and electronic registry upgrades were implemented in the Capital City of Ulaanbaatar and in eight provinces around the country [City of Erdenet (Orkhon aimag); City of Darkhan (Darkhan-Uul aimag); City of Arvaikheer (Uvurkhangai aimag); City of Uliastai (Zavkhan aimag); City of Khovd (Khovd aimag); of Zuunmod (Tuv aimag); City of Undurkhaan (Khentii aimag); and City of Choibalsan (Dornod aimag)]. These locations were chosen to produce maximum benefits as these provincial centers comprise Mongolia's main populated areas.

However, this work (digitization and ePRS adoption) later rolled out nationwide with additional Government of Mongolia (GoM) and donor support. Specifically, GASR completed the digitization of all property records in the Ulaanbaatar district offices, and they also digitized property records in two additional regions and extended the ePRS system to those regions in 2015. Finally, the World Bank also supported digitization and migration to ePRS in all remaining regions and the development of a second iteration of ePRS (ePRS II) that helps improve functionality and supports integration between GoM offices and private sector actors in 2017-2018.

Topics

Topic	Vocabulary	URI
Land

Producers and Sponsors

Primary Investigator(s)

Name	Affiliation
The Cloudburst Group

Funding

Name	Abbreviation	Role
Millennium Challenge Corporation	MCC

Metadata Production

Metadata Produced By

Name	Abbreviation	Role
Millennium Challenge Corporation	MCC	Review of Metadata
The Cloudburst Group	CB	Independent Evaluator

Date Produced

2020-04-21

Metadata Version

Version 2 (April 2020): This is the second version.

Metadata ID Number

DDI-MCC-MNG-CB-RSPS-2020-v2

MCC Compact and Program

Compact or Threshold

Mongolia Compact I

Program

Registry System Process Survey evaluates select subactivities of one of the components of Property Rights Project (PRP). PRP carried out following set of activities under the two project areas: 1. Improving the formal system of land privatization and registration: a. Establish a commission of stakeholders and technical experts to: 1) identify obstacles to Mongolian citizens' ability to privatize and register land efficiently and cost effectively; 2) make recommendations on how to reduce such obstacles; and 3) work with government agencies to implement these recommendations. b. Upgrade the geospatial infrastructure used by Mongolian government agencies, including the provision of Continually Operating Reference Stations (CORS) and Global Positioning System (GPS) equipment to regional land offices, and training on the use of each. Create a centralized electronic registration system that is accessible from any registration office in Mongolia. c. Improve the capacity building for land offices, including the creation of Land Market Specialist (LMS) positions to help citizens resolve issues related to land privatization and the training of land office staff in land law and the use of satellite imagery. d. Upgrade the physical infrastructure of state registry offices, including improvements to the State Registry's Central Office space, the establishment of new offices in four districts of Ulaanbaatar (Songinokhairkhan; Bayanzurkh; Chingeltei; and Baganuur), and upgrades for state registry offices in eight regional centers around the country [City of Erdenet (Orkhon aimag); City of Darkhan (Darkhan-Uul aimag); City of Arvaikheer (Uvurkhangai aimag); City of Uliastai (Zavkhan aimag); City of Khovd (Khovd aimag); City of Zuunmod (Tuv aimag); City of Undurkhaan (Khentii aimag); and City of Choibalsan (Dornod aimag)]. 2. Privatizing and registering land plots in ger areas: a. Provide active assistance to low and middle income households in completing the steps to privatize and register rights for land plots. b. Identify utility corridors and map public land areas within ger district areas. RSPS evaluates select activities under component 1.a and 1.b. Specifically, RSPS assesses the progress and any implementation of amended legislation that came as outcome of review of inadequencies of the current laws covering property rights records (1.a), and the migration to centralized electronic property record system called ePRS and the digitization of paper based records that accompanied the migration to electronic record keeping system (1.b).

MCC Sector

Land (Land)

Program Logic

Registry System Process Survey evaluates select subactivities of one of the components of Property Rights Project. PRP carried out following set of activities under the two project areas: 1. Improving the formal system of land privatization and registration: a. Establish a commission of stakeholders and technical experts to: 1) identify obstacles to Mongolian citizens' ability to privatize and register land efficiently and cost effectively; 2) make recommendations on how to reduce such obstacles; and 3) work with government agencies to implement these recommendations. b. Upgrade the geospatial infrastructure used by Mongolian government agencies, including the provision of Continually Operating Reference Stations (CORS) and Global Positioning System (GPS) equipment to regional land offices, and training on the use of each. Create a centralized electronic registration system that is accessible from any registration office in Mongolia. c. Improve the capacity building for land offices, including the creation of Land Market Specialist (LMS) positions to help citizens resolve issues related to land privatization and the training of land office staff in land law and the use of satellite imagery. d. Upgrade the physical infrastructure of state registry offices, including improvements to the State Registry's Central Office space, the establishment of new offices in four districts of Ulaanbaatar, (Songinokhairkhan; Bayanzurkh; Chingeltei; and Baganuur), and upgrades for state registry offices in eight regional centers around the country [City of Erdenet (Orkhon aimag); City of Darkhan (Darkhan-Uul aimag); City of Arvaikheer (Uvurkhangai aimag); City of Uliastai (Zavkhan aimag); City of Khovd (Khovd aimag); City of Zuunmod (Tuv aimag); City of Undurkhaan (Khentii aimag); and City of Choibalsan (Dornod aimag)]. 2. Privatizing and registering land plots in ger areas: a. Provide active assistance to low and middle income households in completing the steps to privatize and register rights for land plots. b. Identify utility corridors and map public land areas within ger district areas. RSPS evaluates select activities under component 1.a and 1.b. Specifically, RSPS assesses the progress and any implementation of amended legislation that came as outcome of review of inadequencies of the current laws covering property rights records (1.a), and the migration to centralized electronic property record system called ePRS and the digitization of paper based records that accompanied the migration to electronic record keeping system (1.b). The registry strengthening component of the PRP was focused on institutional strengthening measures. There were four key groups of activities and outputs: · Information Management: Develop and support adoption of a common property identifier for the General Authority of State Registration (GASR) and the Administration for Land Administration and Management, Geodesy and Cartography (ALAMGaC) and support the development of, and training for, a new electronic Property Registration System (ePRS). · Capacity Building: Strengthen capacity of land and registry offices through trainings on Human Resources (HR), finance, streamlined procedures, equipment use, and gender. · Infrastructure: Expand the number of GASR offices, improve the physical infrastructure at GASR offices, and update geospatial infrastructure. · Policy & Law: Provide recommendations and draft legislation through the land committee, by training Land Market Specialists to help citizens register hashaa plots and engage more effectively with banks and in land markets, and by organizing workshops to build citizen awareness. In the short term, the registry strengthening component's sub-activities were designed to: · Reduce the time and costs associated with registering and transacting in property; · Increase the accuracy and availability of land-related information; and, · Improve the land administration system's processes, regulations, and customer experience. In the medium to long term, the project was expected to strengthen institutions and hence increase confidence in the land governance system. With enhanced confidence in land institutions, and related use of the formal land system, Mongolians were also expected to increase their use of collateralized credit, expand land markets through increased land transfers, and improve land utilization.

Program Participants

The registry strengthening component of the PRP was built on the theory that greater transaction efficiency, an improved land administration system, and expanded transparency and access to information would increase confidence in the land governance system and the capitalization of land assets in Mongolia. To achieve these goals, the project worked with four groups of participants: a) staff at the GASR central and district offices in Ulaanbaatar and in eight regional offices; b) ALAMGaC staff and particularly 13 Land Market Specialists (LMS) who served as a resource for citizens seeking to privatize and register property; c) members of a Commission focused on improving the legal and regulatory environment (LRC); and d) citizens using the above land administration services, as well as land holders in Ulaanbaatar and the eight aimags targeted by the registry strengthening component.