No more detours for safe water
Private sector company leading innovation towards safely managed water in Mongolia
Auto-Water-Kiosk, it is called, it is a smart water kiosk in operation since June 2023 and located beside the main road of the outskirts of Ulaanbaatar, the capital city of Mongolia.
It was built through a private-sector investment. Bayalag Gobi co. ltd company, the company that built the auto-water-kiosk has constructed many water-kiosk designed and funded by UNICEF in Gobi Altai province situation at Altai city from the Capital city of Ulaanbaatar for many years. UNICEF cooperated with Bayalag Gobi co. ltd in Zavkhan, Gobi-Altai, and Bayankhongor provincial Governor’s offices on SMART water kiosks to make the water accessible 24/7, in the last 5 years.
The company has further innovated the water kiosks that were originally designed with UNICEF support.
Auto-water-kiosk is their latest innovation for water kiosks. Having learned from the past programmes and challenges they face, the Bayalag Gobi Co. Ltd company has re-engineered an innovative water-kiosk to reach more than 25,000 people living in summer house areas close to Ulaanbaatar- Shadivlan.
Shadivlan was selected for the following reasons: (1) lack of safely managed water services, (2) lack of connection to the central piped system for water and sewerage, (3) huge number of pits latrines that pollute the groundwater, and (4) soil contamination. It was noted that hygiene practices and environmental degradation are also poor in the areas. With authorization from the Ministry of Environment and Tourism, the location close to the road was made available to the company.
Mr.Tuvshintur, the CEO of Bayalag Gobi co. ltd company wants to change the game and contribute to improving the water quality in the area. Based on the experience and lessons learned from the UNICEF programme, Mr. Tuvshintur comes up with the Auto-Water-Kiosk concept a very innovative idea, the first ever in Mongolia that will relieve many children and families living in the summer houses and gers areas. According to Mr. Tuvshintur, Despite the investment in the auto-water-kiosk around USD 200,000 [ building the well and surrounding infrastructure] which is comparatively higher than building a regular water well, he wanted to demonstrate how the private sector can lead the way towards safely managed water services.
Mr.Tuvshintur said, “Water issues are everyone’s issue and can be solved with a combined effort from both public and private sectors.”
Bayalag Gobi co. ltd company auto-well innovations include: (1) automatization of water distribution points, (2) installation of filter, and purification equipment (3) heavy metal detection devices from the water source to ensure safely managed drinking water access to the communities.
With this series of processes, the company has built a water distribution point, with high-quality water available to the communities. They produce 3 different types of water depending on the need of the population: (1) spring water direct from the source for 6.5 MNT [0.002 USD] per litre used for another purpose than the consumption; (2) adavance1 filtered water- 8.5 MNT [0.003 USD]; and 3- Advance 2 -purified water 80.5 MNT [0.03 USD]. The purified water is similar to bottled water available in shops at affordable prices. The company has a shop open 24/7 shop, to purchase water, and sell also standard water fetching containers.
Thanks to this newly constructed safe water system in a convenient location, people can get safe water on their way to their summer houses thus decreasing the time spent previously on fetching water elsewhere and far from their homes.
The auto-water-kiosk is a game changer for many families.
Nomin, 24, is fetching water with her brother, 4, from the auto-water-kiosk. Although she lives 2 kilometers from the kiosk and uses her car to come, she prefers this water to the regular well near her home. Nomin says that the water quality is so much better than the other one and she does not have to boil before drinking. She is glad that her family now can drink water of similar quality as store-bought bottled water. She also bought a standard drinking water container from the auto-water-kiosk center which helps them deliver and store water safely at home.
“ This is a real development in the water sector in Mongolia, this company has opened the path and UNICEF, the government and many partners need to support and make this initiative known and scale it up.”
“Now, we have brought their innovation and best practices to Ulaanbaatar city suburban area where safely managed water is scarce”
“This is really unique”
Bayalag Gobi Co. ltd has become one of the leading private companies among the water service provider in Mongolia and his effort and innovation is widely recognized. To scale up Auto-Water- Kiosk innovative solution, more investment and commitment are needed from all the stakeholders. UNICEF Mongolia applauds Mr. Tuvshintur and his entire team’s effort and enthusiasm in creating a change-making initiative that has proven how the private sector contributes to the advancement of safely managed drinking water.
