Midterm Review of Governance Sector 22 – 23 June 2009, Baghdad

1. Midterm Review of Governance Sector 22 – 23 June 2009, Baghdad

2. Partnerships and Coordination UN Agencies UNDP, UNOPS, UNICEF, UNIFEM, UNESCO, UN-HABITAT, UNFPA, ESCWA, UNDP POGAR, WHO, FAO, WFP, ILO, UNIDO, UNAMI/EAT, UNAMI/HRO, IOM NGOs (National/ International) NCCI, Aswat Al-Iraq, International Foundation for Electoral Systems, Amman Centre for Human Rights Studies, CIDA, Juvenile Justice Coordination Committee, JICA, Save the Children UK, IMC, Norwegian Church Aid, Norwegian People’s Aid, Child Rights Network, People in Need, Arab Institute for Human Rights Tunisia. Chaired by UNDP Iraqi Counterparts Ministry of Planning and Development Cooperation, Ministry of Municipalities and Public Work, Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Defence, Board of Supreme Audit, Commission of Integrity, Independent High Electoral Commission , Communications and Media Commission, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Human Rights, State Ministry of Women’s Affairs, State Ministry of Civil Society, Ministry of Council of Representatives Affairs, and the Council of Representatives, High Judicial Council of Iraq, Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs; the Iraq Bar Association

3. UN Assistance Strategy To contribute to the achievement of the goals defined in the National Development Strategy (NDS), International Compact with Iraq (ICI) benchmarks, and Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) Governance Sector National priority or goals (NDS 2007- 2010) Strengthen good governance and improve security ICI Targets 3.1.1 National dialogue and reconciliation 3.1.2 Implementation of political / legislative timetable (constitutional review) 3.1.3 Regional and international cooperation and integration regional support for reconciliation 3.3.1 Establish a comprehensive human rights regime country wide role of civil society and human rights

4. ICI Targets (cont.) 3.3.2 Establish and implement effective rule of law institution and policy 3.3.3 Establish effective transitional justice mechanisms 4.1.2. By end of 2008, capture in budget all significant revenues and expenditures, including all subsidies and donor funds 4.1.2 Develop framework for intergovernmental fiscal relations to ensure efficiency, transparency and equity while maintaining national fiscal integrity 4.2.1 Engaging with Civil Society: Policy framework for civil society, freedom of information protect rights of media 4.2.2. Good Governance and Anti Corruption: Strengthen rule of law for anti corruption 4.2.3 Adopt and implement policies, regulations, procedures, and build institutions of public service management UN Assistance Strategy (cont.)

5. ICI Targets (cont.) 4.3.2 Private Sector development and investment promotion rule of law and judicial system in commercial and financial activities 4.4.1 Delivering Basic services toward MDGs reduced gender discrimination and increase woman participation in governance 6.4 Improved national planning; standardize data collection and processing functions in Ministries, regions and provinces 6.5 Improved donor coordination and implementation Millennium Development Goals Goal 8 Develop a global partnership for development UN Assistance Strategy (cont.)

6. Sectoral Achievements & Contributions • Elections Provincial elections (January 2009) were milestone evidencing the effects of capacity development of the IHEC, civic participation with a high turnout, election of 25% women to Provincial Councils and a remarkable level of citizen security before, during and after balloting • 260,000 IHEC staff trained in different competencies • Massive mobilization of 20,000 observers and 500 electoral media monitors to facilitate Voter Registration process and 45,000 national observers to cover the pre-balloting, Election Day and post-balloting processes. • Over 264,000 Iraqi men and women in 19 electoral governorates mobilized through NGOs to actively engage in the election process. • Concrete steps as training and publications for free and fair based media coverage and countrywide communication networks using IT and conventional means with public feedback on the election process.

7. Sectoral Achievements & Contributions (cont.) 2. National Dialogue and Human Rights: Progressive civil society engagement in national dialogue process for reconciliation and national unity Four roundtable discussions on national dialogue and reconciliation took place in Baghdad with an array of representatives from Parliament, Constitutional Review Committee, GoI, KRG, Kurdistan National Assembly, experts, and the UN Improved knowledge building, awareness, public dialogue and informed decision making at implementation and policy levels Nationwide situation analysis on the impact of violence on children by UN-supported Iraq Child Rights Network Countrywide network of 80 NGOs and 250 members capacitated to work towards conflict management and peace building through the “Right to Live in Safety Campaign.”

8. Sectoral Achievements & Contributions (cont.) • Comprehensive study on the legal and regulatory framework for press freedom in support of the independence of Commission on Media and Communication • Preparatory work undertaken for a National Strategy for the Advancement of Iraqi Women • Situational analysis on the status of Iraqi women for the development and adoption of gender sensitive legislation and to understand the effects of conflict on women’s lives, their coping mechanisms, and required social services • Launching of the ‘Code of Professional Conduct for Iraqi Journalists and successful measurement of media progress through ‘Media Sustainability Index’ for Iraq • Grant for humanitarian assistance to provide Iftar meals was transformed into civic engagement activity covering 18,000 war widows and vulnerable families who express their needs and concerns regarding participation in civic and electoral processes.

9. Sectoral Achievements & Contributions (cont.) 3. Rule of Law and Human Rights • Virtual, online Iraqi Legal Database (ILD), with training on its use, was launched making the entire corpus of Iraqi law, published from 1917 to 2008 available on the internet at www.iraq-ild.org • A review and tracking exercise which examined the content of speeches and public statements made by COR members was completed with specific tracking to issues related to integrity, inclusive governance, gender and human rights content being and was used to design capacity building activities. • Strategic action plan developed for the Ministry of Human Rights • Enhanced capacities (80 staff trained) of ministries of Defence and Interior ministries on mainstreaming human rights • A training Course for 15 members of Iraqi diplomatic corps was conducted to undertake regional diplomacy in compliance with established rules and international conventions

10. Review of the Juvenile Care Law completed under the leadership of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs Partnership with 12 local NGOs to raise awareness of public, government and NGOs on human rights through publicity campaigns marking the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Contributed to evidence based, gender sensitive National Strategy on Iraqi women with two pieces of comprehensive research for broad national level consultation: “situation of women in minority communities in Iraq”, “honor related crimes in Kurdistan”. Sectoral Achievements & Contributions (cont.)

11. 4. Institutional and Regulatory Framework Strengthening Leading the development of a multi-sectoral, multi-agency public sector reform and modernization programme, in support of the Government’s envisioned comprehensive civil service reform, improvement and standardization of policy, planning and general management functions of government, and their automation as a precursor to e-governance. Joint programme on Anti-corruption launched to facilitate GoI’s efforts to comply with the UN Convention Against Corruption – comprehensive study of the legal framework and GAP analysis for compliance with UN-CAC will contribute to GoI efforts towards compliance Board of Supreme Audit introduced performance audit for the first time in its 81 year history with capacity development support from UN Sectoral Achievements & Contributions (cont.)

12. Central and regional component of Donor Assistance Databases developed in Baghdad and KRG respectively for improved aid effectiveness and management Local Area Development Plan Programme (LADP) has facilitated the prioritization of priority projects for socio-economic development at district level over next 5 years. (visit www.ladp-iraq.org to keep track of project submissions) Under the title of “Capacity Development on Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) Monitoring, Reporting, and Planning at the National and Local Level in Iraq,” the Iraq Info database (www.iraqinfo-online.org) to guide Iraq as well as UN towards MDGs. Sectoral Achievements & Contributions (cont.)

13. Key Lessons Learned • Closer linkage of programme to emerging and dynamic Government objectives and Iraqi priorities. • Formulation of comprehensive capacity and institutional development programmes aligned to the Government’s own development plans and budgets have replaced ad-hoc training activities. • Need for continuous planning, contingency planning and reassessment of needs during implementation to effectively address actual emerging needs of counterparts and deal with contingencies. • Ways to better monitor and evaluate in a remote management environment, through developing more simplified, standardized tools for communication and reporting. • Anticipate the need for future fund-raising to fill the funding gap as the ITF draws to a close. • Maintaining sustainability of development interventions through a concerted and explicit level of effort.

14. Key Lessons Learned (cont.) • Risks and Challenges • Limited numbers of UN staff and consultants are allowed inside Iraq at any one time, for security reasons and due to limited slots. • Security risk affects all four outcomes but would most impact area-based activities and availability of implementing partners. • Frequent turnover of counterpart officials and staff remains a challenge. • Monitoring and evaluation of all project activities is still done indirectly, and issues of implementing partners’ accountability remains a challenge. • Iraqi staff saturation and absorptive capacity of GOI counterpart institutions is a risk. • Lack of donor and partner coordination may create overlaps in programming. • Institutional and legal constraints persist for freedom of the press and full independence of non-governmental organizations.

15. Key Recommendations • Inter-institutional, thematic teams and task forces in areas such as: elections, human rights, Rule of Law, anti-corruption, and gender provide optimum opportunities for integrating programming. • Improved coordination with counterparts and increased leadership of the Iraqi counterparts. • Co-funding with the Government of Iraq. • Joint assessment and evaluation of project activities with counterparts ensures maximal contribution to achieving project objectives.

16. Increased partnerships and networking between Iraqi counterparts and regional institutions. More women in elected offices may provide more advocates for gender and women’s perspectives. The UN is seen by counterparts as being neutral and capable of providing objective advice without political interference. The Government Status of Human Development in Iraq provides evidence based responses using Iraqi generated data. Key Recommendations