Status of the Provincial Reconstruction Team Program in Iraq
Abstract
The U.S. government continues to advance capacity-development programs in Iraq's ministries and provinces. For the past four decades, Iraq was a statist economy with a highly centralized administration. Baghdad drove budgeting and service delivery through ministries that funded the provinces. The decentralization of authority that the Coalition Provisional Authority initiated following the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime had the effect of empowering inexperienced local officials to manage the delivery of provincial government services. The consequences of this devolution in decision-making required the United States and other donors to establish programs aimed at developing local capacities. The Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) Program is key among these. PRTs provide the best opportunity for U.S. government experts to provide grassroots support in the development of nationwide governance capacity in Iraq. National Security Presidential Directives 36 and 44 provided the policy and organizational framework for U.S. civilian-military organizations to implement nationbuilding programs. The PRTs comprise personnel from the Departments of State (DoS), Justice, and Agriculture; the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and its Local Governance Program contractor, RTI International; the U.S.-led Multi-National Force-Iraq (MNF-I) and its subordinate element, the Multi-National Corps-Iraq (MNC-I); the Gulf Region Division of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (GRD); and Iraqi-born expatriates (often holding U.S. citizenship).
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Oct 29, 2006
- Accession Number
- ADA460506
Entities
Organizations
- Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction