US embassy cable - 04AMMAN3306

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 07 AMMAN 003306 
 
SIPDIS 
 
EB/IFD FOR DEMARCELLUS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAID, ECON, EFIN, JO, IZ 
SUBJECT: JORDANIAN INFORMATION ON HOST GOVERNMENT 
RECONSTRUCTION ASSISTANCE TO IRAQ 
 
REF: SECSTATE 84935 
 
1. (SBU) SUMMARY: In response to a reiterated request for 
information on Jordan's contribution to the reconstruction of 
Iraq, the Jordanian Ministry of Planning provided to the 
Embassy a report detailing Jordan's Iraq-related activities. 
The report highlights several areas in which the GOJ has 
offered in-kind assistance to the CPA and government of Iraq; 
for a variety of reasons, most of these offers have not been 
followed up by CPA/GOI.  Significant exceptions to this rule 
include Jordan's "at-cost" provision of programs training 
Iraqi police and border security personnel, Iraqi air traffic 
controllers and other civil aviation-related personnel, and 
employees of the the Iraqi Ministry of Electricity. The 
report also mentions improvements Jordan has made to its own 
infrastructure which benefit Iraq, as well as Jordan's 
extension of exemptions, previously granted to UN agencies 
and contractors under Oil-for-Food, to the agencies and 
contractors pursuing relief and reconstruction acivities in 
Iraq since the conclusion of the Oil-for-Food program.  The 
report does not mention substantial contributions by the 
Jordanian Armed Forces (JAF) in the training of the New Iraqi 
Army, the operation of a field hospital in Fallujah, and 
border cooperation with the CPA and coalition forces. END 
SUMMARY. 
 
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NIA Training 
------------ 
 
2. In cooperation with coalition forces, the JAF is providing 
staff and facilities for the training of the officer corps of 
the New Iraqi Army.  To date, NIA officer candidates who have 
completed or are undergoing training in Jordan include 
approximately 700 company-grade officers, 140 staff officers, 
20 brigade and division commanders, 50 female officers, and 
340 aviators. 
 
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Fallujah Field Hospital 
----------------------- 
 
3. Established by the JAF Royal Medical Services (RMS) at the 
end of April 2003 and staffed by RMS personnel since that 
time, the 30-bed Fallujah Field Hospital has handled 282,533 
cases and performed 1,005 surgeries.  The RMS has also 
medevaced several problematic cases to Amman and performed 
operations on them there, at the expense of royal charities. 
 
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GOJ Non-military Assistance 
--------------------------- 
 
4.  The Ministry of Planning forwarded the following report 
to the Embassy on April 27, 2004, outlining Jordanian 
reconstruction assistance to Iraq since the end of the war 
there. 
 
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Begin text: 
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The Government of Jordan is deeply committed to continue its 
leading efforts in providing humanitarian and reconstruction 
assistance to the Iraqi people and to utilize its territory 
as a transit point through which humanitarian assistance is 
channelled to Iraq from different countries and international 
organizations.  The Government of Jordan has launched the 
Jordanian Initiative to provide emergency humanitarian aid 
and facilitate its swift delivery into Iraq through Jordan. 
The Government also coordinated with international agencies 
and NGOs to channel humanitarian aid directly to Iraq or 
through the Jordan Hashemite Charity Organization and the 
Crisis Management Center. Jordan's efforts at ensuring a safe 
humanitarian corridor and smooth flow of goods have 
registered a new world record in the delivery of urgently 
needed food supplies achieving a rate of 12,9000 tons per 
day. 
 
Due to the geographic proximity and more importantly to the 
deep economic and social ties that Jordan has built over the 
last decade with Iraq, Jordan maintains a unique position 
that allows it to act as an enabler and facilitator to all 
international initiatives that address the reconstruction and 
development challenges. 
 
The Government of Jordan stresses the need to work 
expeditiously towards the establishment of a full-fledged, 
legitimate and representative Iraqi government as a 
cornerstone of the process of rebuilding Iraq as the 
Kingdom,s efforts are currently focused on assisting the 
Iraqis to reconstruct their institutions. 
In this regard, the Government of Jordan sought to address 
the immediate and medium term priority reconstruction needs 
of Iraqi sectors in a manner that will ensure that the 
assistance offered will be tailored according to the needs 
and requirements of Iraqi ministries and institutions which 
according to the United Nations/World Bank Joint Iraq Needs 
Assessment report published October 2003, include 
strengthening institutions of sovereign, transparent, and 
good government, resorting critical human services, and 
supporting an economic and social transition.  In line with 
UN Security Council Resolutions 1483 and 1151, and the United 
Nation,s appeal for assistance, Jordan has repeatedly 
expressed its readiness to assist in the reconstruction of 
Iraq to ensure the presence of the necessary conditions for 
attaining sustainable development, as well as to advance the 
current efforts aimed at restoring and establishing strong 
national and local institutions for a representative 
government. 
 
Furthermore, the Government of Jordan made substantial 
investments to create a supportive infrastructure that will 
ensure the smooth flow of goods and services into Iraq to 
support both humanitarian efforts and private sector 
development requirements. As a result, Jordan has incurred 
to-date, approximately US$20 million, in addition to an 
estimated total of US$ 80 million required to cover 
additional necessary infrastructure improvements. 
 
In December 2003, the GOJ approved the request presented by 
the World Bank for the establishment of an Interim Office for 
its operations concerning Iraq and extended to the World 
Bank,s staff privileges, immunities, exemptions and 
facilities accorded to resident representatives of other 
international organizations in Jordan, and their spouses and 
dependents. Moreover, the International Finance Corporation 
is currently in the process of establishing an office in 
Amman and the IMF is considering the establishment of a 
similar office in Jordan. 
 
On the other hand, and in response to the formal requests for 
assistance in restructuring and rehabilitation of priority 
areas, vigorous consultations were conducted between the 
various Jordanian Ministries and institutions and the Iraqi 
Interim Government and the Coalition Provisional Authority 
(CPA).  Moreover, several bilateral initiatives were launched 
between the Government of Jordan and the Iraqi Interim 
Government/CPA covering 18 priority sectors.  These include: 
Labor, Agriculture, Justice, Investment Climate and Trade, 
Financial Markets/Privatization, Census, Police and Border 
Training, Education, Transport, Banking, Health, 
Telecommunications, Water and Sanitation, Energy, Housing and 
Land Management, Urban Management, Culture, and finally 
Tourism.  The projects fall within the areas of regulatory 
and process benchmarking of Jordanian institutions, training 
contributions both inside and outside of Iraq, as well as 
direct assistance and support for Iraqi ministries.  The 
objectives of these projects are to encourage the formation 
of democratic market based institutions in Iraq, and 
improving the security, health, and economic well being of 
the Iraqi people. 
 
Achievements attained to date can be summarized as follows: 
 
Labor 
 
The Iraqi Interim Government and the Coalition Provisional 
Authority (CPA) presented the Government of Jordan with an 
assessment of the immediate needs of the Iraqi labor sector 
and a request for assistance and training in the restoration 
of democratic trade unions and creation of labor/management 
relations system. The Jordanian Ministry of Labor expressed 
it readiness to assist in the rehabilitation of this vital 
sector through the transfer of expertise and knowledge in the 
following areas: 
-     Rehabilitation of the Social Welfare System. 
-     Provision of Vocational Training. 
-     Working Environment Safety Rules and Regulations. 
-     Rehabilitation of Labor Unions. 
-     Work Inspection and Control Procedures and Regulations. 
 
 
Energy 
 
As part of Jordan,s efforts aimed at assisting the Iraqi 
people to reconstruct their electricity networks, which have 
been severely damaged as a result of the war as well as 
training Iraqi experts, a Memorandum of Understanding was 
signed between Jordan,s Ministry of Energy and Mineral 
Resources and its Iraqi counterpart under which a liaison 
office to handle electricity cooperation between Iraq and 
Jordan was established.  The office is located in Jordan,s 
National Electric Power Company (NEPC) and is directly linked 
to Iraq's electricity ministry.  It will provide local and 
foreign investors with information on the present and future 
needs of Iraq's electricity sector, in addition to projects 
under implementation.  The office will also handle all tender 
announcements of relevant Iraqi projects in local newspapers 
and on the website of the NEPC. 
 
Moreover, in cooperation with specialized agencies in Jordan, 
the office will provide the Iraqi side with training, 
technical, financial and administrative assistance, noting 
that Iraq's daily electricity needs are estimated at 18,000 
megawatts but only 5,000 megawatts are currently provided. 
 
 
Agriculture 
 
Jordan,s assistance was requested in the following: 
-     Advice on sanitary/phytosanitary standards and 
long-term structuring and organization of Iraq,s Ministry of 
Agriculture. 
-     Experience sharing and knowledge transfer on water 
control improvement and monitoring specifically the exiting 
water distribution systems in the Jordan Valley. 
-     Experience sharing and knowledge transfer on cropping 
of agricultural products. 
-     Experience sharing and knowledge transfer on soil 
analysis systems carried out in Jordan before fertilizer 
application. 
 
Moreover, the Government of Jordan was presented with a 
request for a high level technical meeting to re-establish 
dialogue between the two ministries and identify potential 
areas of cooperation. 
 
Accordingly, a meeting was held on 22 September 2003 between 
representatives from the Jordanian and Iraqi Ministries of 
Agriculture to identify the requirements of the Agricultural 
sector in Iraq. An initial agreement was reached to provide 
assistance to the Iraqi Ministry of Agriculture through: 
 
-     Experts to assist in the building of internal capacity 
within the Iraqi Ministry of Agriculture 
-     Sharing Jordan,s expertise and knowledge in combating 
desertification and desert rehabilitation. 
-     Sharing Jordan,s expertise and knowledge in water 
control improvement, monitoring, and water distribution. 
-     Assistance in formulating a marketing strategy for 
Iraqi agricultural products. 
 
 
The need for further coordination and discussions to explore 
areas of assistance and exchange of expertise was stressed 
during the meeting as a prerequisite for the formulation of a 
clear work plan to assist the Iraqi Ministry of Agriculture 
in its capacity building and rehabilitation efforts. 
 
 
Justice 
 
The Jordanian Ministry of Justice will present its expertise 
and knowledge in institutional and capacity building through 
training courses for judges and district attorneys at the 
Jordanian Judicial Institute. 
 
 
Trade 
 
The main priority areas identified include assistance and 
advice on development and enforcement of health, safety and 
quality standards for imported goods, and transition to a 
market-based public distribution system (PDS). The Government 
of Jordan is currently coordinating between the relevant 
Jordanian institutions to arrange for technical level 
meetings that will address these priority areas and establish 
means of cooperation and assistance.  Moreover, and in light 
of the termination of the oil-for- program in November 2003, 
Jordan is currently in the process of instituting a mechanism 
and process to secure the smooth and safe flow of goods in 
and out of Iraq. 
 
 
Financial Markets/Privatization 
 
The CPA requested Jordan,s assistance in the capacity 
building/rehabilitation of this sector through experience 
sharing of Jordan,s privatization programs and initiatives. 
The Ministry of Planning provided the following documents in 
order to acquaint the Iraqi side with Jordan,s 
accomplishments in this regard: 
-     A report on Jordan,s privatization program. 
-     Jordan,s National Privatization Strategy. 
-     Administrative Structure of the Executive Privatization 
Commission. 
-     Financial System of the Executive Privatization 
Commission. 
-     Privatization Proceeds Fund. 
-     Privatization Law No. 25 (2000) 
-     Report on Jordan,s experience in deepening its capital 
market. 
 
Census 
 
Series of meetings of international experts were held at the 
Jordanian Department of Statistics during the period 26-30 
July 2003, which included representatives from the U.S. 
Census Bureau, National Statistics/United Kingdom, the United 
Nations, the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), 
and the Statistical Center of Iraq (SCI).  The meeting 
focused on experience sharing on modalities of conducting a 
national census and identifying and addressing the current 
requirements of the SCI.  An agreement was reached to focus 
on rehabilitating the SCI through capacity building 
initiatives.  As such, a training course for a team comprised 
of four Iraqi statisticians was conducted at the Jordanian 
Department of Statistics in the area of Living Costs Data 
Collection and Geographical Information Systems. 
 
 
Police and Border Training 
 
In line with His Majesty King Abdullah II directives to 
provide necessary assistance to the Iraqis, including the 
rehabilitation of their security forces, the Government of 
Jordan endorsed on 14 October 2003 the agreement with the CPA 
to start a two-year training course for 32,000 members of the 
Iraqi police force at the country's various police academies. 
 The courses started in December 2003, with each course 
lasting 8-weeks offering training to 1,500 Iraqis at a time, 
over a period of 2 years. 
 
 
Education 
 
With regards to the rehabilitation of the Iraqi Ministry of 
Education, the CPA sought Jordan,s assistance in conducting 
a thorough review of the examination system. Education 
specialists were requested to assist the Iraqi Ministry of 
Education in the assessment, review, improvement, and 
implementation of the current examination system so as to 
align it with the new curriculum and textbooks.  The request 
is currently being processed by the Jordanian Ministry of 
Education in order to formulate future assistance. 
 
 
Transport 
 
Jordan was presented with a request to assist in the 
rebuilding of Iraq,s civil aviation infrastructure, and 
restarting its civil aviation system and commercial aviation 
operations, through the following areas: 
-     A comprehensive practical course of instruction for air 
traffic controllers, and civil aviation administrators at the 
Queen Noor Civil Aviation Technical College. 
-     Assistance in the return of Iraqi owned commercial 
aviation assets currently outside Iraq, listing of all Iraqi 
owned assets in Jordan and facilitating the access of CPA 
personnel to the equipment, in addition to an update on the 
maintenance history or status of the aircraft and equipment 
with a recommendation as to flightworthiness. 
 
Following a meeting between Iraqi civil aviation 
representatives and the Jordanian Minister of Transport, an 
agreement was reached to conduct a 4-week training program 
for a total of 29 Iraqi Civil Aviation Authority personnel. 
The training program includes a Control Procedural 
(Non-Radar) Refresher courses, Air Traffic Control 
Supervisors courses, and Automated Identification System 
training courses. The program is envisioned to be the first 
in a series of such events designed to upgrade the skills of 
Iraq's civil aviation personnel, in cooperation with the 
national flag carrier, Royal Jordanian with the group of 27 
Iraqi air traffic controllers having completed a training 
program in mid-November 2003 at the Queen Nour College 
 
 
Banking Sector 
 
The CPA requested conducting training programs for Iraqi 
managers from Rafidain and Rasheed banks at Jordan,s 
Institute of Banking Studies. The programs will provide a 
comprehensive, practical overview of key principles of 
commercial bank operations including credit evaluation, 
financial statements, bank branch management and the 
implementation of business plans to operate effectively in a 
competitive economic environment. 
 
Meetings were held between representatives of the 
CPA/Ministry of Finance and the Governor of the Central Bank 
of Jordan in addition to a separate meeting between 
representatives of the commercial banks in Jordan and the 
CPA/Ministry of Finance to identify the needs of the banking 
system in Iraq.  Based on these meetings training was 
designed for Iraqi banking sector personnel to be held in 
Iraq. The program includes 6 training components comprising 
of the following: 
-     Banking Operations training for the duration of 21 days 
or the equivalent of 126 credit hours. 
-     Bank Credit training for the duration of 17 days or the 
equivalent of 102 credit hours. 
-     Money and Capital Markets (Treasury Operations) 
training for the duration of 8 days or the equivalent of 48 
credit hours. 
-     Banks and Branches Management for the duration of 10 
days or the equivalent 60 credit hours. 
-     Specialized Banking Topics training for the duration of 
8 days or the equivalent of 48 credit hours. 
-     Comprehensive Computer Programs training for the 
duration of 5 days or the equivalent of 40 hours. 
 
The program was sent to the Ministry of Finance for their 
review and final approval. 
 
 
Health 
 
The CPA requested assistance in six key areas: Healthcare 
Delivery and Financing; Public and Environmental Health; 
Pharmaceuticals; Education, Training, and Licensing; Health 
Information; and IT. 
 
As such, a series of technical meetings were held with 
representatives from the Iraqi Ministry of Health as well as 
representatives from the CPA to discuss the requirements of 
this vital sector in Iraq and possible means of cooperation 
and assistance which the Jordanian MOH will be offering. 
 
 
Telecommunications 
 
The Government of Jordan received a request for assistance in 
the following areas: 
-     Developing a licensing regime for Iraqi Telcom 
Regulatory Authority (ITRA). 
-     Interconnection of Iraqi and Jordanian fiber network. 
-     Training for Iraqi Ministries, officials. 
 
The request is currently being processed by the Jordanian 
Ministry of Information and Communications Technology. 
 
Moreover, the Ministry of Information and Communications 
Technology and Jordan Telecom announced in November 2003 the 
completion of a fiber optic cable link between Jordan and 
Iraq. The project, carried out by Jordan Telecom and the 
Iraqi Telecom and Post Iraqi Public Company, was the result 
of coordination between the telecom ministries of both 
countries. 
 
Extending over 400 km on Jordanian territory, the link was 
completed employing digital communications equipment, that 
uses SDH technology with a 622 MBPS capacity The cable will 
enable Jordan to act as a transit point for 
telecommunications traffic from Iraq to the international 
network &FLAG8 (the fiber link across the globe) via the 
port city of Aqaba. Also, the Aqaba link to the FLAG Telecom 
project, which extends from Britain to Japan, was expected to 
increase eight-fold Jordan's telephone and Internet capacity, 
with 13 other European, Middle Eastern and Asian countries 
attached to the network. 
 
Cooperation between the Government of Jordan and the 
Government of Japan 
 
Based upon the Japanese,s Government pledge made during the 
International Donor,s Conference on Reconstruction in Iraq 
held in October 2003 in Madrid, negotiations have been 
initiated between the Government of Jordan (GOJ), represented 
by the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation 
(MOPIC), the Japanese Embassy in Amman and Japan 
International Cooperation Agency (JICA) for the provision of 
training programs for Iraqi personnel through the Third 
Country Training Program for Iraqi personnel funded by the 
Japanese government that will be executed in Jordan. 
 
The Government of Jordan in coordination with JICA is 
currently finalizing the necessary arrangements for 
conducting the above stated programs, in order to sign the 
Record of Discussions which will set the framework of the 
training courses for each of the ten areas identified by 
JICA. The training programs will cover seven areas, namely 
health, education, agriculture, culture, statistics, police 
training, electricity, water and sanitation, urban 
development, and the preservation of cultural heritage. 
 
1.    Health 
The Ministry of Health will conduct specialized training 
courses that address 6 areas identified by the JICA office in 
Iraq: 
 
-     Delivery of Basic Primary Health Care Services 
-     Environmental Health Services 
-     Community Health Services 
-     Pharmaceuticals 
-     Information Technology 
-     Laboratory Training 
The Jordanian Ministry of Health and JICA have prepared the 
draft Framework for the necessary training courses including 
the estimated costs. The Framework was presented to the Iraqi 
Ministry of Health for their comments and feedback, in order 
to finalize the above stated courses. 
 
2.   Education 
Based on the request presented to the Ministry of Education 
in the provision of training courses for Iraqi personnel, the 
Ministry of Education identified the following areas: 
 
-     International Computer Driving License Courses 
-     Vocational Training Education 
-     Design of a new curriculum system and textbooks 
-     Improvement and implementation of the examination system 
The Jordanian Ministry of Education and JICA have prepared 
the draft Training Program Framework for the training courses 
including the estimated costs. The Framework was presented to 
the Iraqi Ministry of Education for their comments and 
feedback, in order to finalize the  above stated courses. 
 
 
3. Agriculture 
The Ministry of Agriculture expressed its readiness to assist 
in the provision of training courses as part of the Japanese 
Third Country Training Program, in the following areas: 
-     Water Management 
-     Marketing of Agriculture products 
-     Formulation of National Strategies  for the 
Agricultural Sector 
-     Rehabilitation of Saline Environments 
-     Increasing Private Sector Investments in Agricultural 
Sector 
The Ministry of Agriculture  is currently waiting for JICA,s 
feedback regarding the proposed training course in order to 
estimate the costs and finalize the framework for the 
training courses. 
 
 
4.    Culture 
The Jordanian Ministry of Culture and JICA have prepared a 
draft Training Program  Framework for personnel from the 
Iraqi Ministry of Culture which was subsequently presented to 
the Ministry for their feedback and comments, for its 
finalization. 
 
 
5.    Statistics 
The Department of Statistic (DOS) and JICA and the Iraqi 
Department of Statistics have finalized the Training Program 
Framework to conduct a training course to improve the 
knowledge and techniques of Iraqi personnel in the field of 
National Accounts and Statistics. JICA is currently 
finalizing the final necessary arrangements with the Iraqi 
Department of Statistics in order to conduct the above 
training course. 
 
 
 
6.    Electricity 
Discussion Records were signed between the Ministry of 
Planning and International Cooperation, JICA, and the 
National Electric Power Company (NEPCO) for a training 
program for a total of 40 engineers from the Iraqi Ministry 
of Electricity. The program is scheduled to start on 4 May 
2004 for the duration of 2 months. 
 
 
7.    Police Training 
In response to the request presented to the Public Security 
Directorate, the Directorate has expressed it readiness to 
conduct 5 different advanced training courses at the same 
time with an average of 200 trainees, with 30-40 trainees for 
each course. The courses will cover the following areas: 
 
1)    Qualifications of Police Leadership in the following 
levels: 
-     Senior Leadership 
-     Intermediate Leadership 
-     Advanced Security 
-     Police Management 
-     Basic Security 
2)    Qualifications of Police Officers in specialized topics: 
-     Crime Scene 
-     Anti-Narcotics 
-     Training of Trainers 
-     Operations Management 
-     Crisis Management 
-     Fire-Arms 
-     Public Order 
-     V.I.P. Protection 
-     Explosives Disposal 
-     Detective Police 
-     Correctional Centers 
-     Special Branch 
-     Installation Security 
-     Forensic Sciences 
-     Traffic Accidents Investigation 
-     Traffic Management 
-     Physical Training 
-     C.I.D. 
 
3)    Qualifications of Police Officers according to 
International Standards and Human Rights 
-     Definition of International Law and Human Rights 
-     Women, Children, and Minorities in Law Enforcement 
-     Protection of Victims of Crime and Authority Abuse 
-     Immunity in Law Enforcement 
 
The Public Security Directorate and JICA have prepared the 
draft Training Program Framework. JICA is currently in the 
process of contacting the Iraqi Ministry of Interior to 
present the draft Framework for their feedback and comments. 
 
 
8.    Water and Sanitation 
A meeting was held at the Jordanian Ministry of Planning and 
International Cooperation between the Jordanian Ministry of 
Water and Irrigation and JICA during which the Jordanian 
Ministry of Water and Irrigation identified the areas of 
assistance it can offer to the Iraqi Ministry of Water. These 
include: 
-     Water Quality 
-     Laboratories 
-     Water Desalination 
-     Water Purification 
-     Water Sewage Treatment Plants 
-     Water Treatment Plants 
-     Maintenance of Water Networks 
-     Water Wells 
An understanding was reached between the Government of Jordan 
and JICA that GOJ represented by either the MOWI or MOPIC 
will present theses proposed areas of assistance to the Iraqi 
side. 
 
9.    Preservation of Archaeological Sites 
A meeting was held at MOPIC between JICA and the Jordanian 
Department of Antiquities, during which both sides agreed 
that the Department of Antiquities will draft and present a 
Training Program Framework to JICA for their feedback. The 
training program will concentrate on the mechanisms of 
establishing a databank at the Iraqi Ministry of Antiquities 
and development and implementation of preservation and 
protection of archaeological sites programs. 
GNEHM