2008 PRT News
PRT to help Iraqis Stretch Their Own Project Funding
(Baghdad PRT signs budget execution agreement with Amanat)
By Teeta Manson
Special Correspondent
Baghdad – With money literally in the bank thanks to growing oil revenues, Iraqis are increasingly supporting their own development while getting help from Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs) to stretch funding through more efficient budget execution.
The goal, as the Baghdad PRT sees it, is to partner with the Baghdad Amanat (municipal government) to restore and upgrade essential services that became virtually nonexistent after years of neglect and conflict.
To that end the Baghdad Amanat signed an agreement in October with the U.S. Joint Contracting Command Iraq (JCCI) to assist the Amanat’s allocation of revenues or “budget execution.” The partnership is designed to permit eight Amanat contracting employees to intern at the JCCI where they will learn formal contracting procedures while administering JCCI contracts for the Amanat.
The agreement is the result of collaboration between JCCI, the Baghdad PRT and the Baghdad Amanat on how to more effectively employ U.S. and Iraqi Government funding for reconstruction and stabilization projects. After analyzing Iraqi budgeting issues, the Economic Section of the PRT noted that haphazard budget execution was a prime bottleneck to contracting projects.
The PRT turned to JCCI because of its local area contracting expertise. JCCI is responsible for ensuring that all contracts for goods, construction, and services signed by the U.S. Military in Iraq meet quality, fairness, and price standards. The U.S. Government contracting agency operates from 15 Regional Contracting Centers (RRC) nation-wide with the Baghdad RCC alone responsible for an average of 110 contracts a month worth $10 million.
The JCCI internship program will allow Amanat contracting specialist to intern in groups of two at the Baghdad RCC for a period of three months each. Salaries for the interns will continue to be paid by the Amanat. The first two interns to participate in the program are: Ms. Shehad Musa, Deputy Finance Management Officer for the Amanat, and Falah Bawa, lead counsel for the Directorate General of Procurement.
The internship will focus on contracting procedures and is designed to be practical as well as instructive. Interns will administer Iraq Commander’s Emergency Response Program (I-CERP) projects which are executed by the U.S. Government using Iraqi Government funding.
JCCI was a logical partner for the partnership because it has undertaken several recent initiatives involving budgeting and funds transfers. One initiative required vendors to accept Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) for contract payments over $25,000. This action encouraged banks in Iraq to begin offering EFT services, which few of them were offering previously.
The U.S. contracting command is also a prime proponent of the Iraqi First Program, which gives preference to Iraqi vendors for goods and services if their prices are comparable to those offered by foreign businesses. The result has been greater local employment and an increase in Iraqi companies doing business with the U.S. military.
Recently JCCI began a program to set aside 10 percent of its contracts for women-owned businesses. Baghdad was the test bed for the program and since June has signed dozens of contracts in excess of $7 million. The women’s initiative has now been implemented nationwide in Iraq.