Current Resources Devoted to Education in Iraq

Since May 2003, international agencies have been involved in supporting education in Iraq, but fragmented data has not allowed these numbers to be integrated into the governmental budget. The UN ~US$80 million and World Bank have two trust funds that go to help Iraq specifically, while USAID has contracts through the US Supplemental Budget for Iraq. Although these programs are a great beginning, they do not reach the level as assessed by the October 2003 UN/WB Needs Assessment Study, $4.8 billion.

Current Projects financed by the Iraq Trust Fund, include but are not limited to:

• Emergency Textbook Provision Project: US$40million. Since May 2004, the project is intended to finance and distribute 69 million textbooks for 6 million students spread across all of the governorates for the 2004/05 year.

• Emergency School Construction Rehabilitation Project: US$60million. Since October 2004, the project is meant to construct 55 school buildings and rehabilitate 133 schools. The rehabilitation of 133 schools is complete, at an average cost of US$181 per student, and benefits 45,000 pupils while creating 3,000 construction jobs.

• Emergency School Construction Rehabilitation Project- Supplemental Grant for Marshland Schools: US$6million. Since October 2006, the grant provides additional funding for the Emergency School Construction and Rehabilitation Project to construct ~33 new schools in the Marshland areas of Iraq. This would go to benefit between 6,000 and 8,000 children in that region, and create near-term employment opportunities within construction. Local stakeholders are involved (i.e. NGOs).

• Third Emergency Education Project US$100million: The funds are from the International Development Agency IDA, in collaboration with the World Bank. This project is in progress (updated July 2008) and aims to develop a national school construction and maintenance program as well as offer capacity building activities.
• A distance learning via satellite television project is underway with UN agencies to produce programs for displaced persons, total $US5 million.