Santiago of Chile is a city of 470 years history, stretching out the western skirt of majestic Andes range. New part of the old city is called Manhattan in Santiago or in brief Sanhattan, since it resembles Manhattan of New York for its unique architecture of glass skyscrapers, looming up as if competing with the high peaks of mountains.
Sanhattan is a modern district of trees and greeneries, planted with full of thought for the best of man and also the world famous brand luxurious stores, deluxe hotels are located here. It is also leading Latin America dynamic financial center for its per capita income ($15000).
We flew via Korea, the USA and Brazil for two nights, travelling to the other end of needle, pinning through globe and arrived in a city of 6 million populations and with fresh air and we from Ulaanbaatar city could here breathe deeply.
Sanhattan is a symbol of effective and efficient economic policy of Chile managing wisely its mining income and improving the living standard of its population significantly and basis for further development and progress and prosperity of Chile.
Columbia University professor Jeffry Sachs said once that any country has to pass through three major transitions becoming a rich from being a very poor. There are four different economic phases of structures: pre-commercialization, commercialization, industrialization and knowledge based economy.
The country has to develop its development policy and strategy, suitable for its own condition to move to the next phase.
Many developing countries get stuck for many years at pre-commercialization or at pre- industrialization or at pre-knowledge based phase. Main reason is the extremely difficult transition activities and the complexity of finding right form.
To carry out the initial transition, there should be dynamic urban and rural labor distribution, and exchange of production between urban and rural population. Economy shall enter its commercialization phase when all the rural population participates in this exchange process. Many of the African countries are stuck up in this phase because they could not accomplish this particular transition.
As for Mongolia, it has successfully completed its initial transition and engaged in the preparatory period for its next transition from commercialization to industrialization phase.
But as for Chile, it has completed this phase about twenty years ahead Mongolia and today engaged in the process of transition from industrialization to knowledge based economy.
Chile has brought an end to its dependency on minerals through Stability fund and diversified its economy and managed to strengthen its capacity. Today Chile has developed world level industries of fishing, winery, fruits, vegetables, wood and paper and is laying foundation for knowledge based economy.
It is a great opportunity and viable university knowledge to learn from Chilean experience, which has successfully gone through the path, turning mining income as its foundation of rapid development, which is a challenge for Mongolians.
It is possible for us, Mongolians to go through this transition relatively short span of time if we could wisely utilize the existing opportunity of globalization and information technology achievements.
At that time, Ulaanbaatar will have its own Manhattan and would increase per capita income up to the level of Chile or by three times.
Santiago city.
UB Post
April 30,2010