Chief of Mission Mr. Rafiq A. Tschannen

Letter from the Chief of Mission

It has been five years since the IOM Iraq Mission was established. Addressing the largest population displacement in the Middle East since 1948, IOM mobilised more than 220 million US Dollars for its diverse portfolio of initiatives that continue to benefit Iraq and its people. The next five years are expected to require resources of similar proportions, if significant progress is to be made to redress ongoing displacement and to improve conditions for the sustainable return of millions of Iraqis. Since 2003, IOM has supported the displaced, the stranded, the unemployed and otherwise destitute, and many of those who returned to Iraq, as follows:

• Continuously monitoring a growing number of Iraqi IDPs, reaching 2.7 million in 2008, IOM implemented 89 emergency relief campaigns, 81 monitoring operations, and 92 community assistance projects, including in the areas of water and sanitation, health, education and income generation. Besides the internally displaced, these actions have also benefitted non-displaced local populations and returnees.
  
  
• Targeting destitute veterans of security forces, unemployed, underemployed and other disadvantaged communities, IOM has been supporting the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs in setting up employment centres nation-wide, followed by targeted capacity building to eventually operate a functioning system of specialised information, counselling, referral and direct livelihood support.
  
  
• IOM has also been building the capacity of the Iraqi Government to manage migration more effectively, through expert training, technical support and specialised equipment. Targeted measures addressed the needs of the emerging Ministry of Displacement and Migration and its legal, policy and operational requirements. At the same time, migration and especially border management as cross-cutting, inter-ministerial issues required re-defining and promoting intra-service and inter-agency cooperation amongst the various ministries and other concerned authorities. As a result, the free cross-border flow of legal persons and goods to and from Iraq has been facilitated, while the space for illegal activities was reduced over time.
  
  
• Targeting the Ministry for Planning and Development Cooperation, IOM assisted in establishing a merit-based recruitment system for identifying and placing highly-skilled Iraqi expatriates into Iraq’s public administration. Sixty-two experts were deployed by the project in public administration and academic institutions. They brought with them an immense amount of international expertise in support of the ongoing capacity building and development efforts set to significantly benefit Iraq in the long run.
  
  
• In parallel, IOM directly assisted more than 12,000 Iraqi nationals to voluntarily return to and reintegrate in their home country, mainly to the more secure and relatively stable northern Governorates. More than 2,600 small business projects were implemented through reintegration funds provided by host Governments, creating more than 5,000 new jobs for both returnees and resident populations.
  
  
• Intending to improve the prospects for future massive returns, IOM facilitated the participation of the Iraqi Diaspora in the political decision making in their country, by supporting out-of-country voting in democratic elections. With the same objective, IOM supported the set up of the Iraqi Property Claims Commission aiming to redress injustices related to deprivation of real estate property that occurred over the past four decades.
  
  
• Finally, IOM facilitated the deployment of vital humanitarian relief staff to Iraq, including UN, INGO and donor mission personnel, through authentic and therefore often praised security awareness training, which enabled the international community to more directly interact with the Iraqi Government, military forces and local implementing partners, and to more adequately monitor international assistance provided to people in need.

Despite all these efforts, much more needs to be done. The principal choice is largely between assisting Iraqis inside Iraq today, or outside their country tomorrow.

IOM would like to warmly thank all Iraqi Government staff and their departments that have been supporting our efforts during these past five years. We are fully aware that IOM’s contribution might seem marginal compared to the huge burden borne by the Iraqis themselves.

IOM would also like to thank all other governments and non-governmental partners for their indispensable contributions, and looks forward to more peaceful times so that we can fully devote our efforts and resources without the well-known challenges posed by security concerns for our beneficiaries and our staff. The latter often work under the most difficult conditions, and deserve a special ‘thank you’ for their unchallenged dedication!

Rafiq A. Tschannen
Chief of Mission IOM Iraq