4
Water Supply
STATUS OF CURRENT WATER SUPPLY IN GER AREAS
PHOTO 4.1. Residents fill water containers at a water kiosk.
Water kiosks: The current status of water supply and sewer services is fairly consistent across the three khoroos under review. No house or ger in any ger area of Ulaanbaatar (UB) has a private connection to water distribution networks. Residents instead purchase water at kiosks. More than 550 kiosks have been developed across the ger areas of UB, some 460 of which are managed by Water Supply and Sewage Authority Company of UB City (USUG)— (Photo by Brett Sedgewick, World Bank) the public water supply and sanitation utility company owned by the municipality of UB (MUB).1 The rest are contracted out to private operators. About 66 percent of the kiosks depend on tanker trucks operated by USUG for water delivery; most of the rest are connected to water distribution mains, which have been developed under the two World Bank–financed UB Services Improvement Projects. A small number of kiosks in remote areas depend on local water wells. (See appendix D for the distribution of kiosks.2) Access to kiosks: Kiosks have been located so that each serves about 900–1,200 people, in line with the city’s benchmark of 1,000 people per kiosk. For most residents, kiosks are located within 100– 500 meters.Table 4.1 summarizes the distributions of kiosks in the three khoroos under review, and appendix D provides information on broader ger areas. Services: The selling schedule is generally 10 a.m.–8 p.m., with a midday lunch break. Residents report that 83 percent of kiosks provide water according to this schedule, with exceptions usu-
TABLE 4.1. Distribution of Kiosks in Three Ger Areas
PIPE-FED KIOSKS
TRUCK-FED KIOSKS
NUMBER OF RESIDENTS PER KIOSK
DISTANCE FROM KIOSK (M) FOR MOST RESIDENTS
City Center ger (Naran)
9
1
1,225
500 m
Midtier ger (Bayankhoshuu)
9
0
887
100 m
Fringe ger (Sharhad)
5
5
1,113
500 m
GERS/KHOROOS
Source: USUG (Water Supply and Sewage Authority Company of Ulaanbaatar City) 2009.