Iraq Administrative Reform Project Quarterly Report April 1– June 30, 2014

The project has supported the Government of Iraq in various initiatives, leading to the completion of several key milestones. With the completion of these initiatives, the project's scope will now focus on the sustainability of systems that will have a significant impact on the lives of Iraqi citizens. One of the notable achievements of the project is the launch of the new and fully-automated Citizens Complaint System in partnership with the Council of Ministers' Secretariat (COMSEC). This system aims to secure new levels of accountability and transparency from government directorates and offices to the citizens of Iraq through better information sharing. The system is designed to handle and respond to citizen concerns by connecting 55 Citizen Affairs Offices in ministries, governorate offices, and other government entities with the Directorate of Public Relations and Citizen Affairs at COMSEC. The project has also supported the establishment of the Iraq Center for Excellence within COMSEC's organizational structure. The Center was formally launched in June in a ceremony sponsored by COMSEC, and has since come under its complete ownership, while Tarabot continues to provide technical assistance and support. The Center aims to improve the organizational development and performance of Government of Iraq entities. A conference was held to mark three years of USAID-Tarabot's efforts in public policy development and to discuss the role of public policy and its future in Iraq. The event was attended by over 100 participants from ministries and directorates, governorate offices, academia, think tanks, and civil society representatives, and was orchestrated by Tarabot to facilitate links between government policymakers and key stakeholders in the formulation of public policy. The Ministry of Environment has also formally established its Department of Public Policy, which is the first of its kind among all Iraqi ministries. This marks the emerging institutionalization of public policymaking in Iraq. USAID-Tarabot has also held a ceremony to conclude its Project Management initiative with the Kurdistan Regional Government and to commemorate the achievements of its partnering ministries and participating engineers, who have been actively engaged in Tarabot's capacity building program. The Education Capacity Building initiative and the USAID-Tarabot's Master Trainers program have also been completed. To commemorate the participation of staff members from the Ministry of Education, Tarabot held a ceremony for 58 graduates who are now certified as subject matter experts in how to identify, analyze, evaluate, and conduct training programs within the ministry. By enhancing the ability of the ministry to identify its own administrative deficiencies and effectively address them, the project aims to improve the delivery of services to Iraqi citizens. The project has also made significant progress in the area of public policy development, with the launch of the Citizens Complaint System and the establishment of the Iraq Center for Excellence. These initiatives aim to improve the accountability and transparency of government directorates and offices, and to enhance the organizational development and performance of Government of Iraq entities. Overall, the Iraq Administrative Reform Project has made significant progress in the penultimate quarter of the project, with the completion of several key milestones and the launch of new initiatives aimed at improving the delivery of services to Iraqi citizens. The project's focus on sustainability and institutionalization of public policymaking in Iraq will continue to have a significant impact on the lives of Iraqi citizens.