Building on dozens of projects already underway, the Government of Iraq today authorized UNDP’s Funding Facility for Stabilization (FFS) to initiate 202 more projects to accelerate the immediate stabilization of Mosul and greater Ninewa Governorate.
UNDP initiatives were accelerated parallel to a report by the Iraqi Parliamentary Financial Commission that estimates the losses and reconstructing the liberated areas from Da'ish (ISIS) control to reach to $70 billion.
The projects will repair damaged water, sewage and electrical systems, rehabilitate education and health facilities, and boost the local economy by employing youth on work brigades to remove rubble, open transport routes, and revitalize the city.
At a signing ceremony in Baghdad, Dr. Mehdi Muhsin Al-Alaq, Acting Secretary General of the Council of Ministers, emphasized that providing these basic services would pave the way for the return of displaced people to liberated areas.
Ms. Lise Grande, UNDP Resident Representative for Iraq, said “This authorization comes at just the right moment. A lot of work is already underway, but so much more needs to be done. We’re ready, and now we have the green light to go".
The 202 projects were developed by the key provincial and line directorates, in cooperation with UNDP’s FFS, and are designed to support stabilization efforts in Mosul city and greater Nineveh governorate.
Since the start of military operations to retake Mosul six months ago, nearly half a million people have been displaced from their homes. More than two-and-a-half years of ISIL control and conflict has crippled the city’s infrastructure. Homes have been destroyed, schools and health centers damaged, and crucial public infrastructure is in ruins.
Once the operation to free western Mosul from ISIL is over, the task of reconstructing a safe, functioning metropolis will be one of the biggest stabilization initiatives since World War II.
Established in June 2015, FFS is working in newly liberated areas in Anbar, Salah al-Din, Nineveh and Diala Governorates. More than 500 projects are completed or being implemented across 22 locations. Since the start of the crisis, over 1.6 million people have returned to their homes.
Iraq TradeLink
20 April
