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.