Manuel Palz, Deputy Head of Unit responsible for the Manager Training Program at the BMWK, and the Vice President and Managing Director of the Mongolian Employers’ Federation (MONEF), Ganbaatar Khuyag, welcomed the participants and emphasized the importance of the MP as well as the resulting long-term cooperation opportunities for the economic cooperation of both countries. “The Manager Training Program networks and connects. By supporting active alumni work, we create networks and synergies, promote long-term and sustainable cooperation and thus achieve an impact that goes far beyond the program,” summed up Mr. Palz.

Speed dating for German and Mongolian companies

During the subsequent panel discussion, in which representatives of the East Asian Association, the BMWK, the GIZ and two alumni participated, the concrete contribution of the MP to the development of German-Mongolian economic relations and the SME sector in Mongolia became clear. In particular, the opportunities of the Mongolian market, which offers business opportunities for German companies in the field of renewable energies, in the food industry or in the construction industry, in addition to the mining and raw materials sector, were highlighted. The positive balance of the MP for the last almost 15 years was vividly illustrated by concrete examples of cooperation between Mongolian and German companies as well as by the successful alumni work.

The exchange of experiences was followed by matchmaking between German and Mongolian companies in the sectors of mining, raw materials, renewable energies, among others. Many Mongolian alumni of the MP come from the extractive industries sector, so that numerous B2Bs took place and many German entrepreneurs of the market development program networked with the alumni of the MP. In addition, 15 companies were represented with exhibition booths to present their products and offers.

The highlight of the event was the signing of a Joint Declaration on further cooperation between the two countries within the framework of the Manager Training Program until the end of 2025. The Parliamentary State Secretary of the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection, Dr. Franziska Brantner, and the Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Development of Mongolia, Chimed Khurelbaatar, thus sealed the program continuation for another three years. It was agreed that in the coming years, the focus will be increasingly on groups dealing with current trends such as raw materials management, green technology, energy efficiency and food security, thus taking into account the needs of both national economies.