Well, that's what I was looking for, but I couldn't find it...:rofl:Quote:
Originally Posted by boxmama
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Well, that's what I was looking for, but I couldn't find it...:rofl:Quote:
Originally Posted by boxmama
Quote:
Originally Posted by ordinaryseawoman
Thanks OSW,
Wow! It's actually kind of frieghtening looking at those numbers. It's simply amazing isn't it? Can they really be doing all of this and more? I don't think they are having so many problems spending this years budget like they did last year. Maybe they should RV before they spend it all. LOL
Lewscrew
Maybe they should RV before they spend it all. I agree totally. what are they waiting for??? this Rv could have a great effect on all Iraqis. I know it will have a great effect on Me. LOL:smiley: STILL:waiting:Quote:
Originally Posted by lewscrew
Iraqi official says economic and political plan will be launched soon
The Associated PressPublished: April 5, 2007
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BAGHDAD: Iraq and the international community plan to launch a five-year program to integrate the country into the regional and global economies, Deputy Prime Minister Barham Saleh said Thursday.
He spoke to reporters after meeting with Ibrahim Gambari, the U.N. chairman of the Iraq Compact, a five-year plan that requires the Iraqi government to enact key political and economic reforms as it moves to financial self-sufficiency and economic integration.
Saleh said Gambari would meet key officials, including Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, and decide on when to launch the project.
"We are in the final stages and this initiative will be officially launched in the near future and Mr. Gambari's presence among us is an indication to the importance that the United Nations gives to this project," Saleh said.
Gambari said "there is a lot of work to be done and so little time" to get started "so the people of Iraq could benefit from this double commitment of the Iraqi government and the international community."
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Last month, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon hosted a conference at U.N. headquarters for nearly 100 envoys and urged international support for the Iraq Compact
It was established by the United Nations and the Iraqi government shortly after al-Maliki took office in June 2006. Iraqi Vice President Adel Abdul-Mahdi unveiled the economic and political reform package during a meeting at the United Nations last month. It was to be formally adopted by April 30.
Saleh called the plan "a roadmap for Iraq to reach the coast of security and stability."
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Attachment 529
Unable to hide a mood of dissatisfaction
Gloom at currency talks points to deep GCC rift
Six Arab Gulf central bankers deeply divided as they met to hammer out details of monetary union plan.
MEDINA, Saudi Arabia - The tense, gloomy atmosphere at Gulf currency talks in Saudi Arabia indicated just how deeply divided the six central bankers were as they met to hammer out details of a monetary union plan.
Tuesday’s official statement attempted to put up a united front for currency markets tearing at dollar-pegged exchanges rates on the expectation that a 2010 deadline for monetary union would slip.
The body language of the governors, and the mood at the meeting told a different story.
The governors abruptly ended their talks a day early on Tuesday and crammed a scheduled third day of sightseeing in Medina, Islam’s second holiest city, into an evening tour.
The central bankers rarely talked to each other in public during the tour.
They said even less to journalists, who were repeatedly reminded by summit organisers to “stick to protocol”, a stark contrast to the more informal atmosphere of previous gatherings of regional central bankers and finance ministers.
The usually gregarious Sultan Nasser al-Suweidi, governor of the United Arab Emirates central bank, declined comment on everything, even on why he had cut and then raised interest rates on the Monday and Tuesday.
By contrast his head of treasury, who rarely talks to the media, chatted freely with reporters on the subject in Abu Dhabi, the UAE capital, yesterday.
It was al-Suweidi who ratcheted up market expectations for the Medina meeting by casting doubt in an interview in January on whether the six oil producers would stand by an exchange rate regime set up to prepare for a single currency.
At the time he ruled out a unilateral revaluation of the dirham and said any review would be agreed by the six governors.
The governors did agree to leave their exchange rate regime unchanged, Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency Governor Hamad Saud al-Sayyari told reporters after the meeting, although his patience wore thin when he was asked to be more precise.
“Don’t you listen?” al-Sayyari snapped at one reporter. “What do you want? I’ve already said that we are sticking to the same foreign exchange system.”
The governors were under intense pressure to clinch a deal on European Union-style convergence criteria to inject momentum into the monetary union project.
On the one hand, speculators had forced Kuwait and the UAE, the top candidates for a revaluation according to a poll last month, to cut interest rates to ease pressure on exchange rates.
On the other hand, the rulers of the six countries had agreed to give the central bankers power to negotiate a binding agreement.
“They feel a great deal of pressure on the convergence criteria. It’s not easy for them to make decisions,” an official of the Gulf Co-operation Council Secretariat, the executive of a regional economic and political bloc, said on condition of anonymity.
In the end no deal was reached. Al-Sayyari said the 2010 deadline would not be met without an extraordinary effort from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and the UAE.
Oman had pulled out last year, saying it did not think the deadline was achievable.
Even the agreement to leave exchange rates unchanged was purely an informal one, Hamood Sangour al-Zadjali, executive president of Oman’s central bank, said.
The governors had spent three hours behind closed doors without their aides.
“The talks were transparent and frank,” a GCC Secretariat official said, avoiding a question on whether the meeting had been tense. “Each delegate delivered his ideas in a very open manner.”
Middle East Online
Quote:
Originally Posted by buddy54
1 and lift off! There goes the CRAZY country of Iraq into the great green wonders of space....................:drinkbudd
Published: 05/04/2007 12:00 AM (UAE)
Currencies weaken as GCC keeps dollar peg
Reuters
London: Gulf currencies weakened yesterday with the Saudi riyal at a two-month low a versus the dollar as regional central banks reiterated their commitment to existing currency pegs, sending speculative flows into reverse.
A meeting of central bank governors in Saudi Arabia ended on Tuesday with their agreeing to maintain currency policy in the face of market pressure to loosen pegs to the falling dollar.
The executive president of Oman's central bank said the agreement to keep the peg system was informal and had not been formally discussed during the meeting.
"Informally the governors agreed that everything will stay as it is," Hamood Sangour Al Zadjali told Reuters.
Speculation about a currency revaluation had gathered pace before the meeting but banks have moved to quash these bets, with Kuwait and the UAE cutting interest rates in recent days. Kuwait also cut the coupon on its benchmark bonds, making the assets less attractive to speculators.
"The currencies are weakening because all the speculative flows were positioned for a revaluation, then over the past week we have had several signals that the Gulf currencies will not revalue," said Koceila Maames, economist at Calyon in Paris.
Gulfnews: Currencies weaken as GCC keeps dollar peg
It was all a BIG FAT BLUFF!!!!!!!!
http://www.iraqdirectory.com/DisplayNews.aspx?id=3560Quote:
The Central Bank enhances banks’ liquidity -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Iraqi Central Bank said that its new monetary policy will enhance the ability of banks to manage short-term liquidity. A statement of the Bank said that this policy addresses according to the intermediate variables, including the quality of growth in the amount of cash offers, the ability to manage liquidity and the tools of the monetary policy desired by it, pointing out that the new mechanism would include working with the currency and securities markets to create an effective system of payment that grants banks the trust to meet their payment obligations at reasonable cost, and the most costly in the provision of liquidity is the use of additional reserves such as money in treasuries and balances in excess of the legal reserve requirements. 05 April 2007 (Iraq Directory)
probably already posted but interesting none the less ....
http://www.iraqdirectory.com/DisplayNews.aspx?id=3527Quote:
Why You Should Care About the World Bank and Iraq
by Bank Information Center
Just - [30/03/2007]
Reports that a World Bank staffer was shot at an Iraqi checkpoint surfaced in late February. The Bank apparently suppressed the news for several days, presumably in an effort to quell concerns about Bank President Paul Wolfowitz's recent push to re-open a World Bank office in Baghdad. What should the Bank be doing in Iraq? Following is an overview of current Bank involvement in the country, and some reasons why you should be concerned.
What the Bank is doing in Iraq
The World Bank's stated mission for Iraq is to "help Iraq build efficient, inclusive, transparent, and accountable institutions for stability, good governance, and sustainable economic prosperity." Activities are guided by a 2006-7 Interim Strategy Note (ISN) and based on four pillars: restoring basic service delivery, enabling private sector development, strengthening social safety nets, and improving public sector governance. The Bank is currently providing both lending and technical advice to the country. It also administers one part of the International Reconstruction Fund Facility for Iraq: the World Bank Iraq Trust Fund (the UN's Development Group Trust Fund is the other part).
* Lending: The ISN provides a framework for up to $500 million in IDA resources. Another $500 million in IBRD resources may also be available, contingent upon improvements in creditworthiness. The Bank's website lists three active IDA projects with commitments totaling almost $300 million. The IFC, the Bank's private-sector arm, is supporting four private investments in the country totaling $297 million, including a SME-based project involving a Jordanian bank and a Commercial Bank project involving the National Bank of Kuwait (which is also, incidentally, part of a consortium managing the Iraq Trade Bank).
* Analytical & Advisory Services: The Bank is also providing policy reform papers on key issues and sectors, and organizing policy dialogues. Examples of Iraq reform paper topics include: economic reform, investment climate, and state-owned enterprises. One WB policy reform paper (United Nations and World Bank Joint Needs Assessment: Investment Climate (October 2003)) urges Iraq to quickly develop institutions and laws in favor of private and foreign investment. The Bank is also the lead adviser to the IMF's Iraq program on sectoral strategies including, inter alia, the oil sector.
* Iraq Trust Fund: Through the World Bank Iraq Trust Fund, the Bank finances at least 15 active and completed projects totaling over $400 million, primarily in the Water/Sanitation, Transportation, and Education sectors.
* Office: Bank activities in Iraq have been directed through an office in Amman, Jordan since shortly after the fall of Saddam Hussein. Country Director Joseph Saba is based in Washington, DC. However, Paul Wolfowitz has recently made moves to beef up the Bank's presence in the country, negotiating a contract with a new resident country director to be based in Baghdad's "Green Zone".
So what's the big deal?
1. The Bank's rush to re-engage is premature
Some argue that by preparing an ISN and approving lending to the country, the Bank is going against its own conditions for engagement, as outlined in the 1998 "Framework for World Bank Involvement in Post-Conflict Countries" and Operational Policy (OP) 2.30: Development Cooperation and Conflict. The OP states that an Interim-Strategy Note (ISN) may be prepared to guide short to medium-term operations when "active conflict has diminished sufficiently for Bank staff to be able to travel to the area for the purpose of identifying and supervising Bank-supported countries" and "there is a reasonable expectation of continued stability or of a sustainable &cease fire."
Active violence continues, there is no reasonable expectation of stability and World Bank staff cannot travel safely in the country. Sectarian violence is not only ongoing, it has intensified since the Bank prepared the ISN in 2005. And as the February shooting shows, staff is clearly not safe operating in the country. "In the simplest financial terms, there is no functioning banking system, the government does not control its territory and it cannot guarantee loan repayment. Any emergency or social funding in Iraq should come from donors' grants, not loans," Bea Edwards of the Government Accountability Project recently commented. Without stability and security, how can World Bank lending be properly implemented or supervised?
2. If I want your opinion, I'll give it to you&
Wolfowitz has the power to re-appoint a resident country director for the Baghdad office, regardless of staff and management concerns. But should he? Word is that Middle East Vice-President Christiaan Poortman resigned after a falling-out with Bank management over the issue. German ED Eckhard Deutscher has also publicly raised concerns. "Mr. Wolfowitz says he was simply following staff advice 'for a modest, incremental upgrading of our presence' in Iraq and that the plans have board approval, but current and former officials say he and his staff were the driving force for change," Greg Hitt wrote in the Wall Street Journal last year. At the very least, recent developments highlight ongoing tensions between Wolfowitz's team and the Bank's Board. Many are wondering if these tensions will in turn hamper the President's ability to successfully raise funds during the upcoming IDA-15 replenishment.
3. Wolfowitz's conflict of interest
In addition to exacerbating tensions within the institution, many see Wolfowitz's actions as confirming longstanding fears that the President will use his role to promote US geopolitical interests. His rush to establish an office might very well be interpreted as a move to instill greater confidence in other donors involved in reconstruction efforts in Iraq. Some might even go so far as to suggest the move might be laying the groundwork for ushering US private-sector interests back into the country. How can an architect of the Iraq war be truly objective in guiding the country's reconstruction?
4. No 'development cancer' in post-conflict environments?
Paul Wolfowitz has made the fight against corruption a defining theme of his presidency thus far; the Governance and Anti-Corruption Strategy (GAC) is expected to be finalized at next month's Spring Meetings. Yet the GAC's ambitious list of expectations and conditions for tackling corruption in borrowing countries and Bank projects seems oddly matched with lending to Iraq. Numerous reports have highlighted the level of corruption in the country. The Bank apparently grants special exceptions for countries in conflict. But what is appropriate? Many have criticized the GAC's spotty treatment of corruption in post-conflict environments. Given the astounding amount of debt previously incurred by corrupt regimes, and current calls to cancel these "odious" debts, how can the Bank reasonably turn a blind eye to corruption in post-conflict situations? Wolfowitz and the Bank must walk the talk with respect to corruption and Iraq.
5. Iraq: Open for business!
IMF lending and debt relief to Iraq is in part contingent upon the country's development of a petroleum law. Stipulated in an agreement signed before the election of the new government, and without meaningful public scrutiny, the law is currently being debated by the Iraqi Parliament. It will establish a Federal Oil and Gas Council, staffed in part by Big Oil executives. "The new law would grant the council virtually all power to develop policies and plans for undeveloped oil fields and to review and change all exploration and production contracts," Juan Gonzalez reported in the Daily News on Feb 21. Conveniently, it would seem, these companies will be some of the very same US and British companies formerly excluded from Iraq's oil industry due to US sanctions against the country; the Iraqi National Oil Company won't have any advantage over these foreign companies. "Since most of Iraq's 73 proven petroleum fields have yet to be developed, the new council would instantly become a world energy powerhouse," Gonzalez wrote. Contracts with international companies will likely be similar to controversial production-sharing agreements, which could prolong and exacerbate poor governance by allowing investors in the oil and gas sector to effectively bypass the weak or absent legal and regulatory frameworks.
What's the Bank's role in all of this? The institution is advising the IMF in the development of the oil sector strategy. More broadly, the Bank is advising Iraq on attracting foreign direct investment through quickly developing investor friendly laws and institutions and also advising on reforming state-owned enterprises. In addition, the Bank is participating in meetings with the IMF, Iraq Minister of Finance, and the International Tax and Investment Center (ITIC) on Iraq's oil sector. The ITIC is a business lobby group comprised of: BP, Chevron, Eni, ExxonMobil, Shell, and Total. A third workshop with ITIC on Iraq petroleum fiscal issues is scheduled for this Spring.
6. Post-conflict engagement: the Bank's new bread-and-butter?
Why aren't other post-conflict countries receiving the same attention from the World Bank? Comparing World Bank assistance across post-conflict countries is at times like comparing apples and oranges, but here's some food for thought:
* Iraq. Conflict status: ongoing sectarian violence. World Bank lending: Three IDA projects since 2005 totaling $300 million and four IFC projects totaling $297million. No lending 1973-2005.
* Afghanistan. Conflict status: ongoing unrest.* World Bank lending: Since 2002, 30 IDA/IBRD projects totaling $1.29 billion. No lending 1979-2002.
* Ivory Coast. Conflict status: peace process underway, disarmament started.* World Bank lending: Four IDA/IBRD projects since 2002 totaling $235 million.
* Sierra Leone. Conflict status: conflict ended in 2002.* World Bank lending: Fourteen IDA/IBRD projects approved since 2002, totaling $303 million.
* Liberia. Conflict status: civil war ended in 2003, peace agreement signed.* World Bank lending: Since 2005, 4 IDA/IBRD projects have been approved, totaling $46.5 million. No lending 1985-2005
* Central African Republic. Conflict status: fragile.* Since 1999, 4 IDA/IBD projects have been approved totaling $127 million. No new lending 1994-99 or 2001-05.
* Haiti. Conflict status: free and fair elections in 2006.* World Bank lending: Nine IDA/IBRD projects since 2005, totaling $165 million. No lending 1996-2005.
Source: "Semi-Annual Monitoring Report on Conflict-Affected Countries, December 2005-May 2006". The World Bank.
Moving forward...
The World Bank's involvement in Iraq provides critical fuel for analyzing the institution's engagement in post-conflict situations. As intrastate violence has increased, so the Bank has stepped up its involvement in virtually all aspects of "peacebuilding". Do privatization and conditionality in post-conflict lending really enhance prospects for peace? What is the proper role for the Bank? The World Bank, governments, and civil society must actively engage with these and other questions in the years to come.
The IFIs must tread carefully in resource-rich countries. Iraq's oil may in fact be a "resource curse", given the correlation between abundant mineral wealth (in Iraq's case, oil) and negative economic and political consequences. An even more central concern is whether the liberalization and privatization of Iraq's economy will alleviate or exacerbate the conflict, given the country's current inability to successfully distribute resources and profits. The IFIs must provide thoughtful development assistance, not use their influence to drum up business in a barely stable post-conflict environment. And the main beneficiaries must be Iraqis, not international consulting firms, international oil companies, the IMF or World Bank.