MoD

The four provinces within MND(SE) – Maysan, Basrah, Dhi Qar, and Al Muthanna, account for less than 10% of the overall violence in Iraq. Unlike Baghdad, there is very little sectarian conflict; the challenges are criminality, infighting between Shia factions, and the corrosive influence of the militias.

Al Muthanna, Dhi Qar and Maysan provinces are now under Iraqi control. We hope that that Basrah can be transferred to full Iraqi control in the second half of the 2007.

The 10th Division of the Iraqi Army, based in the south, has proven itself during ‘Operation SINBAD’ (see below) which ran from September 2006 to March 2007). They are now planning and leading security operations in Basrah with minimal or no coalition support. The two 10th Division battalions deployed to Baghdad as part of Fardh al Qanoon arrived on time and in full strength, and have performed well.

A Provincial Joint Command Centre has been established to coordinate security in Basrah. Iraqi police and military officers sit side by side in the Centre and are mentored by coalition advisers.

The UK has helped the Iraqi police set up an Internal Affairs Department to root out unacceptable behaviour within police ranks. The corrupt Serious Crimes Unit has also been abolished.

Sufficient numbers of police stations within Basrah city are now assessed at a satisfactory standard to enable transfer of Basrah province to Iraqi control, which we expect to be announced later this year, depending on conditions.

Iraqi soldiers, police and border guards in the south will benefit from a Joint Leadership Academy which the UK is setting up in Basrah later this year. This will provide a wide range of courses to develop professional standards for Iraqi officers.

The UK has helped train Iraqi police and soldiers in the UK. Those trained have then returned to Iraq to help train others.

The Divisional Training Centre where the Iraqi Army undergoes basic training is up and running.

Operation SINBAD: Summary

In conjunction with security training and operations by MNF and Iraqi Forces, Operation SINBAD completed around 550 projects to improve the local environment including neighbourhood projects, infrastructure and agricultural development. As at March 2007 these included:

* 212km of new water pipe laid in an $18 million project which employed 2,310 people at its peak.
* Five Medium-level Electrical Distribution Projects worth $9.8million ongoing until Jul 2007 and seven other local distribution projects completed.
* 70,000 Date Palm offshoots planted with another 70,000 to be planted by June 2007 in a $12 million project to reinvigorate the regionally significant Date Palm industry.
* 336 schools refurbished and basic supplies delivered.
* 51 football pitches and other sporting facilities built or refurbished.
* 41 Projects to supply equipment of refurbish medical facilities completed.
* 29 Area Clearance Projects carried out.
* Six footbridges have been refurbished.
* 81 other miscellaneous projects.
* 24,478 short term jobs created.

Although Operation SINBAD has now been completed, ‘SINBAD-type’ operations continue to be carried out in and around Basrah by ISF with coalition support as required.

Reconstruction across Iraq

By 2003 Iraq had suffered more than 20 years of conflict, mismanagement and chronic under-investment under Saddam Hussein’s regime.

The UK pledged £544m for reconstruction projects at the Madrid Conference in 2003. The Chancellor, Gordon Brown, increased this by £100m when he visited Basrah in November 2006, and the Foreign Secretary pledged a further £100m in May 2007, making a total UK commitment of £744m. The funding has helped in the following areas:

* Over five million children have received life-saving vaccinations. There has been a resulting decline in the prevalence of polio, measles, mumps, rubella, and malaria. And 1,000 healthcare facilities have been rehabilitated or equipped and more than 6,000 staff trained.
* Access to safe drinking water dropped by one third under the previous regime. Now, twenty potable water treatment facilities have been built or rehabilitated, and nine centralized sewage treatment facilities have been rehabilitated. By late 2007, one million people will have improved access to water.
* Iraq dropped from 76 to 126 on the Human Development Index under Saddam Hussein. Now, with the support of the international community, for example, education services are being restored, thousands of teachers are being trained, over 5,000 schools have been rehabilitated and a further 450 are in progress.

Other significant progress:

* Oil production is now around two million barrels per day. Production and export facilities are much more secure.
* Increased oil production and prices have increased Iraq’s revenues from $US18bn (2002) to $US29bn (2005,2006) and a projected rise to $31bn (2007).
* More than 100,000 primary and 40,000 secondary teachers have been trained.
* Over five million children have received life-saving vaccinations.
* 2,500 Iraqi NGOs are now registered with the Iraqi government and trade unions.
* 216 judges, lawyers and officials have been trained in International Human Rights Law.
* Over 3,000 women and young people in the south have been trained in business skills.
* Over 180 journalists have been trained in independent journalism and feature writing.
* 250 newspapers and magazines have been launched. New TV and radio stations have been set up.

Reconstruction in Basrah

In the last decade of Saddam’s regime, the central government systematically starved Basrah and the south of funding, and also imposed various punitive measures such as the draining of the marshes, with inevitable damage to infrastructure and economic prospects. Improvements have been made in:

Electricity

Basrawis have benefited from:

* Electricity transmission and distribution networks repaired post-conflict.
* Transmission lines from Hartha power station to Basrah city repaired – securing electricity supplies for 1.5 million residents.
* Repairing the Hartha power station chimney – securing 170MW - equivalent to enough power for a 24hr supply to 340,000 people (about as many people as live in Cardiff).
* Added and secured 350 MW of electricity and will be adding or securing a further 120 MW over the next 6 months. This is the equivalent to what is needed to provide 24 hours of power for around 1 million people.

Water and sanitation

* Replaced 200 km of water mains, repaired over 5,000 leaks, cleared out 7,000 septic tanks and cleared over 40 kms of drains.
* Constructed a water training centre in Basrah to increase the skills of Iraqi engineers in water treatment and leakage repair. 200 engineers are currently being trained.
* Refurbished a reverse osmosis unit to supply potable water to about 500,000 people.
* Technical advice was provided for a major sewage installation in Al Amarah, Maysan Province, providing up to half the city’s population with access to a piped system and replacing open sewage channels.
* Improved water supply to 60,000 people in Al Amtahiyah (Basrah Province).

DFID power and water projects will employ around 450 people, generate almost 100,000 workdays and secure around 17,000 workdays per year for operation and maintenance.

Institution-building

* The focus of our efforts has been to build capacity of local authorities to plan for, access and spend central and local funds.
* In Basrah, supported production of the first ever Provincial Development Strategy by the Provincial Council.
* On the back of this work, Basrah Provincial Council was able to access $US172 million of central government funding in 2006 and $205 million in 2007 (after receiving none in 2005) and is undertaking more than 300 local reconstruction projects based on this work.
* Refurbished Governorate offices; trained Governorates officials
Built up financial management and budgeting capacity of governorates.
* 216 Iraqi judges, lawyers and prosecutors trained in human rights, international humanitarian law, and independence of the judiciary.

Private sector development

* Established a local Business Journal and Business Information Centre.
* Over 3,000 women and young people in the south trained in business and enterprise skills.

Agriculture

* 60 Agricultural directorate staff trained in administrative, IT and planning skills.
* Restoration of the marshlands in Basrah, Maysan and Dhi Qar. Return of Marsh Arabs.
* Growth in tomato, rice and wheat production.