Rebuilding Iraq

Why it makes sense for ICMA to help

Are we making progress?

I’m a former city manager who has spent considerable time in the NGO world serving local governments.  During the Spring of 2009 I had an opportunity to go to Iraq and serve as a governance and finance advisor for Iraqi provincial governments, as part of the ex-pat force working on a USAID funded and RTI managed capacity-building project called LGP III (Local Governance Project).  I had previously talked to other ex-pats who had been placed on the LGP III project by ICMA and decided this would be an interesting challenge and something very different from what I had been doing in my career.  This was my first experience at international development and I liked it and plan to do more.

I came back from Iraq early March of 2011.  Reflecting back on those many months, I have a better feel for why helping build local government in Iraq is important and a better understanding of why ICMA participates in program such as LGP III.  Prior to going to Iraq, I was operating under the misconception that ICMA did its international work to generate needed income to support its domestic programs.  That thinking was naïve and short-sighted.

LGP III is all about putting legs under provincial government in Iraq.  There are 18 provinces which are similar to the 50 states we have in the US.  Within each province are local governments, similar to counties and cities in the US. By putting legs under provincial government, I mean building capacity in them to stand on their own two feet when it comes to legislating, planning, budgeting and monitoring the performance of local services.  LGP III was crafted to provide consultancy services, working jointly through ex-pats such as myself, teamed up with Iraq professionals who were co-located with provincial officials (appointed and elected).  LGP III is an Iraqi led effort and ex-pats managed from the weeds so to speak.  That wasn’t easy but we did get results.

Practically speaking and prior to 2008 with passage of the provincial powers act (Law 21), local government in Iraq had little choice but to function as an arm of the national government.  Unlike the US, local government in Iraq weren’t empowered to do anything except follow orders from the central government.  And for a long time, the central government was basically Saddam Hussein.

It’s clear to me that without decentralization of the central government and the growth of provincial and local governments in Iraq, not much is going to change and Iraq will continue to languish in its efforts to provide adequate basic services for its citizens.  There still aren’t adequate electric, water and wastewater services……not to mention security.  It remains a frightening mess, even after all these years and billions of dollars ($US) expended.

Strong and accountable local government with its own revenues and authority over basic municipal services is the long term solution.  America knows that, ICMA knows that and the LGP III program knows that.  Projects like LGP III and related projects funded by USAID and supported by ICMA are giving the citizens of Iraq hope that there is a future and there will be clean water and adequate electricity and safe streets.  It’s not going to happen overnight, but serious wheels have been put in motion and progress is being made.

As a result of LGP III, for the first time, provincial governments have drafted and passed legislation addressing social needs, provincial governments have developed strategic plans and meaningful capital improvement plans, and developed capital budgets and operating budgets that are in compliance with central ministry requirements, and provincial governors are providing effective monitoring and oversight of capital projects so these projects come in on time and on budget.  Provincial governments to their credit have also begun to create modern human resource systems that are capable of building human capital which is essential to sustaining the organization and meeting the challenges that await at every turn in the road.  Progress is definitely not a straight path in Iraq, it’s a winding and slippery road.

I left Iraq with much greater clarity of what the US government is doing there and why it’s important for ICMA to stay the course and continue to support capacity building of local government in Iraq.  Some day and hopefully sooner rather than later, Iraq no longer needs US support and its government at all levels is adequately providing for the needs of its people.  The Iraqi people have certainly earned it.