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Ministry of Municipalities and Public Works

The previous regime in Iraq held power inside Iraq through the Ministry of Interior, covering all internal Security arrangements - police, fire service, etc. - in addition to the system of local government through the DG Municipalities, and as well as the service delivery aspects of water, sewerage, urban roads, garbage collection and disposal, and the urban development planning parts of Public Works.

When the Ministry of the Interior was subdivided during the establishment of the CPA, the Security aspects were retained in a streamlined Ministry of the Interior, and the Municipalities and Public Works elements were hived off into a new Ministry of Public Works, itself renamed as the Ministry of Municipalities and Public Works by CPA Order Number 33 of 9 September 2003.

The objective is to create an internationally recognized organization that is viable and delivers municipal services, water supply, and sewerage to the satisfaction of the people of Iraq. The immediate priority is getting services back to a workable state, overseeing the rehabilitation of the primary water and sewage treatment works, and municipal services through the coordination of the Ministry's technical capability together with UN agencies, Private Sector participation, the Ministry's Company, and other donors and financiers, combined with the World Bank / UNDG Needs Assessment process in order to re-establish a working basis for future reforms.

The administrative network of the Ministry of Public Works is ideally placed to roll-out part of the proposed creation of 100,000 temporary jobs in all the Municipalities across Iraq. This aims to provide opportunities for Municipalities to identify temporary job creation projects that at the same time will help the Campaign Towards a Cleaner and Brighter Iraq (TACABI), itself a programme which will help stimulate local economic development by the use of local contractors and support services such as transportation and equipment for garbage collection.

The Ministry of Municipalities and Public Works is structured as 7 General Directorates headed by 7 DGs:

1. DG Municipalities (also heads the committee of 5 DGs)
2. DG Administration
3. DG Water Services (and GCWS)
4. DG Sewerage Services (and GCWS)
5. DG Planning and Following
6. DG Physical Planning
7. DG Construction - Public Works State Owned Enterprise

The General Corporation for Water and Sewerage (GCWS) coordinates all the WatSan undertakings throughout the 15 Governorates - Baghdad City and the three northern Governorates have different administrations. The former three construction companies owned by the Ministry of Public Works (one for each region) have been amalgamated into a single entity with a view to competing commercially for specialized WatSan works.

The key asset of the Ministry is its administrative network, a system of communication with every Governorate (15) and Municipality (265+) in the country. As of September 2003, regular coordination meetings are held (monthly in Baghdad, and in each Governorate where possible) bringing together all the Governorate Directors of Administration (who in turn relate to all the Municipality - Qadah and Nahiya - administrators) and also the Directors of Water and Sewerage, so that the priorities and expenditure of the budget can be tracked and delivered according to the local priorities.

The law of the Ministry of Municipalities of 1971 has been absorbed into subsequent laws such as the creation of the Ministry of Local Government in 1979, and cumulatively the most recent being Law 25 of 1995. These laws were being reviewed, as of late 2003, in the light of the recent localization of elective processes for Sub-national Councils, with a view to establishing a new law that reflects the new inclusive nature of local decision-making at the heart of the new Iraq. CPA Order Number 33 recognises this new position.

The decentralization processes initiated in each of the Governorates in Iraq since April 2003 was aimed partly at briging a new sense of local ownership and prioritization for the delivery of services. The primary challenge facing the Ministry is to coordinate these new local political structures - the Governorate and Municipal Councils - with the existing decentralized administrative network so that the budgets could be built up for 2004 reflecting local priorities, and the payments could flow to pay for the local administration , and the essential maintenance and capital projects that are requiref to restore especially the water and sewerage services, and the municipal services of garbage collection, cleaning and road repairs. These works also need to be also seen in the context of longer term planning urban development and the capital investment required for a workable and efficient built environment in all the towns and cities in Iraq.

The new Governors and the Governorate Councils were established through local elective processes conducted to the satisfaction of the local coalition military commands and the CPA Regional Offices. In turn these councils, the military and CPA Regional Offices have overseen more localized elective processes in most, if not all, the Municipalities - both at the Qadah (districts) level and the Nahiya (small municipality) level.

As of September 2003, negotiations were also underway to establish local Ministry representation - Ministry staff for, in the case of Municipalities and Public Works, the Directors of Administration (who are authorized to make all Municipal payments locally, and collect rents), and the Directors of Water and Sewerage (who are responsible for maintenance of the Water and Sewerage plant and distribution networks, the agreed Ministry capital projects for the area, and the collection of water and sanitation fees, including garbage collection). Most importantly, the Administrators are responsible for accounting for expenditure to the centre. This accounting is seen as the basis of confidence building in the governmental economy, and hence the potential for future investments in capital projects.

Finance, Budgets and future expenditure

The agreed Budgets for the remainder of 2003 were disbursed through the Ministry of Finance. New banking arrangements are working for local expenditure. Staff were paid up to date directly by the CPA. From 1 January 2004, these will also be administered by the Ministry system. Payments as 'stipends' for the sub-national councils are being agreed, to be paid through the local administrators.

Budgets for 2004 were progressively worked up from the local level, reflecting local spending priorities. These also identified the critical maintenance, refurbishment and investment projects for water treatment and sanitation throughout the country. In addition, larger scale investment plans were being formulated that would bring Iraq closer to the objective of a fully functioning democratic economy, reflecting the Needs Assessment study by UNDG/World Bank (see below). These projects were to form part of a larger bid for finance from the international community.

Multi-lateral, NGO and Private Sector coordination

The GCWS provides the principal means by which coordination takes place for maintenance, refurbishment and capital projects in Water and Sewerage throughout Iraq. Much of the work in this field has been undertaken by UNICEF under its WES (Water and Environmental Sanitation Programme). They have compiled the basic understanding of the link between investments in water, sanitation and garbage collection (environmental sanitation) which contribute to health outcomes, especially for children.

Water supply is most often dependent on electricity. Problems faced by the power sector impact on the delivery of water services throughout the country. UNDP was as of late 203 assisting in the restoration of power that would improve the running of water treatment works.

The global body "Cities Alliance" based at the World Bank, and involving UN-Habitat and the global Local Government Associations, have developed good working practice for inclusive urban development and innovative funding mechanisms for shelter and associated infrastructure programmes. These include the Community-Led Infrastructure Finance Facility (CLIFF) which brings local banks into neighbourhood renewal and affordable housing schemes. UN-Habitat has also been helping the Ministry recover the basis for Physical Development Plans for all the Municipalities and will assist in training for participative approaches to Urban and Regional Planning for each Municipality and Governorate.

The UN Development Group (the coordination of all UN Development Agencies) together with the World Bank are compiling a Needs Assessment study of the Water and Sanitation sector (amongst other sectors) that was to be the basis of the Donors' Conference in Madrid, 23-24 October 2003.

Other NGOs are alos involved in the Water and Sanitation sector. CARE is a major contributor. The involvement of all providers has made a significant impact on the delivery of water and sanitation services in many parts of Iraq. Garbage collection is a major issue in keeping storm water drains clear, and the primary intakes to Water Treatment Plants depends on being kept clear. Similarly the replacing of the ageing distribution networks is critical to reduce the amount of water lost in transmission, and the cross contamination that is in evidence where leakages and breaks in the system prevail.

USAID partner Bechtel was as of September 2003 running emergency projects in Water and Sewerage, again coordinating with GCWS. This was seen as developing the model whereby there are many providers in the field, with the Ministry taking more of a coordinating and standard setting function, the primary decisions on priorities being put forward by the Councils.

Functions of Directorates