U.S. Rebuilding in Iraq Is Missing Key Goals, Report Finds

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Production of Oil, Electricity Falls Short

By Dana Hedgpeth
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, April 30, 2007; Page A12

The U.S. project to rebuild Iraq remains far short of its targets, leaving the country plagued by power outages, inadequate oil production and shortages of clean water and health care, according to a report to be issued today by a U.S. government oversight agency.

The 232-page quarterly review by the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction presents a sobering picture of the challenges of reconstruction in a war zone.


It also says the Army has asked Parsons Corp., one of the largest contractors in Iraq, to explain why it should not be barred from pursuing government contracts for up to three years.

In the Army's March letter, it questions "the effectiveness of standards of conduct and internal control systems." Parsons has been the subject of previous inspector general audits and is best known for building only a small fraction of the health clinics planned to be built in Iraq and for building a police academy so flawed that human waste rained from the ceilings.

more:http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/29/AR2007042901414.html

Iraq Rebuild: Your Tax $ At Work (Not)
American Investment in Iraq Reconstruction Projects At Risk, Inspector General Report Finds

(CBS/AP) A severe lack of maintenance appears to be threatening the future usefulness of some of the facilities renovated during the effort to rebuild Iraq, says a new report from the U.S. inspector general monitoring reconstruction.

Inspectors from the Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, which is charged with reviewing Iraqi reconstruction projects that are financed by the U.S., visited eight facilities throughout the country, to determine whether the buildings were operating at full capacity.

What the inspectors discovered is that, even though those facilities had been completed and declared to be successes, and subsequently met the stated "objectives" of reconstruction, they were not functioning properly.

Sites suffered from deterioration, poor or no maintenance, or were not even being used by the people for whom they were built, at a cost to U.S. taxpayers of approximately $150 million.

more: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/04/29/iraq/main2739158.shtml


US report blames Iraqis for failing reconstruction
· Projects hailed as success found to be falling apart
· Security fears contribute to neglected maintenance

Ewen MacAskill in Washington
Monday April 30, 2007
The Guardian

A Congressional investigation into reconstruction in Iraq found that six out of eight projects the Bush administration claimed to be a success were falling apart, throwing doubts over the long-term viability of much of the $30bn (£15bn) programme.
The report, published today, looks at sample projects ranging from a hospital to Baghdad international airport, and finds serious failures and neglect at the heart of the reconstruction plan. Stuart Bowen, the head of the office of special inspector general for Iraq reconstruction, says: "These first inspections indicate that the concerns ... about the Iraqis sustaining our investments in these projects are valid."

The inspectors found serious plumbing and electrical failures, looting, and expensive equipment lying idle, either because staff did not know how to use it or those that did were no longer employed.

more:http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,,2068500,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=1