American Institute: Cash exchange has caused billions of dollars to be wasted in Iraq

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[size=52]American Institute: Cash exchange has caused billions of dollars to be wasted in Iraq[/size]

[size=45]Translated by: Hamed Ahmed[/size]
[size=45]A report by the American (Brookings) Institute for Studies stated that twenty years after the American invasion of Iraq, the seventh Prime Minister of Iraq, Muhammad Shia Al-Sudani, declares that corruption will be one of the biggest challenges facing the country, describing it as “no less dangerous than the threat of terrorism.”[/size]
[size=45]And the report, translated by (Al-Mada), continued, "Many of Iraq's 43 million citizens agree with this opinion."[/size]
[size=45]He pointed out that “public opinion polls and protest movements indicate this, and the Iraqis blame the quota system that was adopted after the American invasion of the country in 2003 in distributing positions among the elites of the ruling political blocs and their wealth at the expense of the citizen.”[/size]
[size=45]And he stressed the possibility of “returning corruption in its chronology to the post-2003 stage, the start of the campaign to rebuild Iraq and the flow of financial aid by the international coalition led by the United States and donor countries, with the absence of follow-up and accountability with regard to the conclusion of contracts and the disbursement of funds within public sector institutions.”[/size]
[size=45]And the report continues, “During the period between 2003 and 2014, more than 220 billion dollars were spent on the reconstruction campaign alone, and it was punctuated by more than 74 billion dollars in foreign aid, in addition to the violence that undermined reconstruction.”[/size]
[size=45]And he warned, "These efforts have also been hindered by the state of general waste by spending money and rampant corruption at all levels."[/size]
[size=45]And the report indicated that "a large number of aid project contractors with Iraqi officials and American personalities were involved in corruption during the implementation phase of reconstruction projects that did not achieve anything."[/size]
[size=45]He added, "Based on the estimates of the report of the Special Inspector General of the Iraq Reconstruction Campaign, at least $8 billion has been wasted out of a total of more than $60 billion allocated for reconstruction, marred by cases of fraud and bribery."[/size]
[size=45]The report considered that “the aid funds that were allocated for projects to rebuild the electricity and health sectors and rehabilitate the infrastructure were a source of personal benefits and a waste of money without accountability.”[/size]
[size=45]And he continues, “While cases of fraud and manipulation were prosecuted for a number of American contractors and persons, many other cases were not caught due to poor monitoring and follow-up by the US government, which made it very difficult to know the extent of the amounts wasted as a result of fraud and forgery.”[/size]
[size=45]The report notes that “the anti-corruption initiatives and efforts that were launched in Iraq and after the invasion have proven their weakness in holding accountable people, individuals and officials who seek refuge in the party and the political blocs to which they belong.”[/size]
[size=45]He stressed, "Major ministries were filled during the post-war reconstruction phase with cadres whose nepotism and partisan loyalties were a criterion for appointing them rather than their competence."[/size]
[size=45]"As a result, there has often been mismanagement in dealing with aid funds allocated for reconstruction projects once they are completed and handed over to the government," the report stated.[/size]
[size=45]He stressed that "many projects that were said to be successful have turned out to be useless or without maintenance due to corruption and lack of accountability."[/size]
[size=45]The report noted that "Iraq's public sector has become, over the years, a tool for nepotism and an increase in the number of civil servants appointed to higher positions called special grades, which are governed by quotas in choosing people and their party affiliations."[/size]
[size=45]He stated, "Twenty years after the invasion of Iraq, public services in the country are still deteriorating and weak due to corruption."[/size]
[size=45]And the report goes on, “According to the latest transparency index report, the public sector in Iraq was ranked in the 23rd sequence as the most corrupt sector in the world for the year 2022, and this constituted an improvement from its classification, which it was in 2006 as the second most corrupt sector in the world.[/size]
[size=45]He stated, "This situation has been a cause in recent years for street protests, especially among young people, expressing their weariness and dissatisfaction with the effects of corruption on public services and the economy."[/size]
[size=45]And the report continued, “Analysts and observers recommended that the country move away from dealing with the cash exchange of funds adopted in economic transactions as a solution to curb cases of corruption.” And the report indicated that “the administration of the Sudanese government began working on this issue under pressure from the United States.”[/size]
[size=45]And he warned, “This is despite the fact that the United States is the one that participated directly in structuring the banking sector in Iraq, and it is the one that introduced the currency auction system for the dollar in the central bank, which later became a means of money laundering and smuggling it to neighboring countries.”[/size]
[size=45]The report stated, "The loose money that accompanied the stage of post-war reconstruction projects has contributed to making the public sector a center of corruption."[/size]
[size=45]And the report went on to say that “awareness and understanding of corruption is an important part of helping Iraq to launch the required reforms in this sector in order to build beneficial public services for its citizens.”[/size]
[size=45]About the American Brookings Institution[/size]
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