Iraq's Failing Construction Projects

Musawi added, “There is also the issue of centralization in approving the projects and expenditures on these projects, as the provinces are not given the powers that facilitate the direct implementation of the projects.”

It seems that the government tried to fix the issue of centralized management for construction projects. On Jan. 18, the Ministry of Municipalities announced the transfer of powers to the provinces, in implementation of the amended Law No. 21 of 2008.

According to this law, the powers of eight federal ministries will be transferred to local governments in a period of time not exceeding two years. Musawi considered it “a good step in order to accelerate the implementation of reconstruction projects and free them from the routine and centralization in decision-making.”

Journalist Wajeeh Hadi, who focuses in his weekly TV show on Alahad satellite channel on revealing corruption that these projects suffer from, told Al-Monitor, “The political parties’ interests are a key reason for the widespread corruption in these projects.”

Regarding the rampant corruption in development projects and construction management, Hadi reiterated that the contractors acquire the money allocated to development and construction without implementing them in several provinces.

The incident in the housing complex in Dhi Qar province, where the contractor disappeared in 2011 while less than 5% of the project was completed, is one of dozens of projects where the law was not implemented.