National Strategy for Poverty Reduction

High Committee for Poverty Reduction Policies .. --- - - Republic of Iraq L Ministry of Planning & Development Cooperation Ministry of Planning Kurdistan Region Government (KRG) .. GY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION High Committee for Poverty Reduction Policies L Ministry of Planning & Development Cooperation Ministry of Planning Kurdistan Region Government (KRG) NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION First Edition , 2009 © Copyright 2009 COSIT All rights reserved Electronic copies of this publication can be downloaded at no charge from www.cosit.gov.iq and www.worldbank.org/iq CDs are available at no charge from Department of Public Relations and Dissemination Central Organization for Statistics and Information Technology (COSIT) Elwiya, near Elwiya Communications Office Baghdad, Iraq CONTENTS Topics Page THE HIGH COMMITTEE FOR POVERTY REDUCTION POLICIES FOREWORD BY THE PRIME MINISTER WORLD BANK ADDRESS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS INTRODUCTION 1. CHAPTER ONE: ELEMENTS FOR BUILDING THE POVERTY REDUCTION STRATEGY 1.1 Starting points for building a poverty reduction strategy in Iraq 2. CHAPTER TWO: CHALLENGES FACING THE POVERTY REDUCTION STRATEGY 2.1 Ensuring security and stability 2.2 Ensuring good governance 2.3 Ensuring fair distribution and diversification of growth sources under market economy. 2.4 Alleviating the negative impacts of economic reform on the poor 3. CHAPTER THREE: CHARACTERISTICS OF POVERTY IN IRAQ 3.1 Estimating the national poverty line 3.2 Rural are poorer than urban 3.3 Poor governorates 3.4 Disparity in expenditure is less than that in income 3.5 Poverty and unemployment 4. CHAPTER FOUR: THE STRATEGY'S PERSPECTIVE ON POVERTY ALLEVIATION 4.1 Higher income for the poor from work 4.2. Improved health status of the poor 4.3 Dissemination and upgrading of education for the poor 4.4 A better living environment for the poor 4.5 Effective social protection for the poor 4.6 Less inequality between poor women and men 5. CHAPTER FIVE: IMPLEMENTATION, MONITORING AND EVALUATION 5.1 Building an institutional mechanism 5.2 Basic functions of the Strategy's implementation mechanism 5.3 On the way towards the realization of the goal ANNEXES 1 2-4 5-7 8 - 13 14 - 36 37 - 40 Annex No.1: Monitoring and implementation of (First outcome): A higher income for the poor from work 43 Annex No.2: Monitoring and implementation of (Second outcome): Improved health status of the poor 48 Annex No.3: Monitoring and implementation of (Third outcome): Dissemination and upgrading of education for 54 the poor Annex No.4: Monitoring and implementation of (Fourth outcome): Better housing environment for the poor 59 Annex No.5: Monitoring and implementation of (Fifth outcome): Effective social protection for the poor 62 Annex No.6: Monitoring and implementation of (Sixth outcome):Less inequality between women and men 65 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 A- Topics Page TABLES Table (1 ): Major poverty indicators in Iraq, 2007 Table (2): Working hours, return per hour and value of weekly wage FIGURES 8 15 Figure (1 ): Poverty line and distribution of average monthly expenditure 9 Figure (2): Poverty gap by governorate (%) 9 Figure (3): Distribution of the poor between rural and urban(%) 10 Figure (4): Income distribution in Iraq among the quintile groups 12 Figure (5): Expenditure distribution in Iraq among the quintile groups 12 Figure (6): Lorenz curve for expenditure in Iraq for 2007 12 Figure (7): The goal is to reduce rate of poor by one third (%) 14 Figure (8): Structural of Poverty Reduction Strategy 15 Figure (9): The poorer(lower20% in terms of expenditure) have less chance of education (Net Enrollment Rate%) 23 Figure (10): Achieving universal primary education for the poor of both sexes (Net Enrollment Rate%) 24 Figure (11 ): Achieving 50% intermediate education for the poor of both sexes (Net Enrollment Rate%) 24 Figure (12):Achieving 40% secondaryeducationforthe poor of both sexes (Net Enrollment Rate%) 24 Figure (13): Poor girl students have less chance of primary, intermediate and high education than boys (Girls to 34 boys ration in educational stages Figure (14 ): Bridging the gap between both sexes among the poor in education (girls to boys ration%) 34 Figure (15): Bridging the gap between both sexes among the poor in literacy (%women to men) 34 Figure ( 16): Increasing proportion of economically active poor women (%) 34 Figure (17): The Strategy's implementation and monitoring framework diagram 39 MAP Map (1 ): Rates of poverty in the Iraqi governorates BOXES Box (1) Four elements embodied in the Poverty Reduction Strategy to achieve its goals Box (2) PRS and the Five-year Development Plan 2010-2014 Box (3) Laws that did not find their way to legislation: Customs Tariffs Law Box (4) Rural development policies: urgent priority for poverty reduction Box (5) Poverty in Kurdistan Region less acute Box (6) Resource allocation policies are ineffectual Box (7) Decisions and legislations supporting loan granting to bolster the agricultural sector Box (8) Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs: Soft-loan scheme for small-scale enterprises Box (9) Chronic disease early detection project initiative Box (10) Consistency of millennium development goals with those of PRS Box (11) Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs: Initiative for rectification of the safety net targeting system Box (12) Recommendation of the food ration reform committee Box (13) Women in Iraqi legislations -B NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 11 4 6 7 10 11 12 16 17 21 23 30 32 34 High Committee for Poverty Reduction Strategy Dr. Mehdi M.AI-Alak Dr.Amira Muhammed Hussain Dr.AbidaAhmed Dakhil AlaaAbdulla Hammood Hussain Mansour Hussain Zaki Abdulwahab AI-Jadir Dr.Abdullah Mohammed Bandar Dr.Ali ShidakhAI-Zubidy Dr. lhsan Jaafer Ahmed Layla KadimAziz Riyadh Fakher Khalaf Dr. Kareem Mohammed Hamza Undersecretary, Ministry of Planning/ Head of Central Organization for Statistics and Information Technology/ Head of the High Committee Member of Parliament Member of Parliament Member of Parliament Undersecretary, Ministry of Justice Director of Project Implementation Team Adviser, the National Commission for Investment Director-General. Ministry of Education Director-General, Ministry of Health Director-General, Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs Director-General, Ministry ofTrade Academic Specialist, Baghdad University Dr. Jamal Rasool Mohammed Ameen Adviser, Ministry of Planning Kurdistan Region Mahmood Othman Maaroof Najah Jal ii Khalil NidhalAbdulkarim Jawad NajlaaAli Murad Abdulla Hassan Mathi Advisory Team: Dr. Amal Abdulameer Sh lash Dr. Kareem Mohammed Hamza Dr. Hasan Lateef AI-Zubidy Adviser, Ministry of Planning, Kurdistan Region Assistant Director-General, Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, Kurdistan Region Director of Budgets Section, Ministry of Finance Director of Living Conditions, Central Organization for Statistics and Information Technology Expert, Deputy Project Director Head ofTeam, Beit-al-Hikma Academic Specialist, Baghdad University Academic Specialist, Kufa University NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 c- FOREWORD Over the past decades government policies did not envisage plans for the reduction or eradication of poverty among the people of Iraq. Towards this aim, government is now facing challenges of strengthening national security, national unity, equality among governorates, achievement of sustainable growth, development of strong and sound economic and social infrastructures, bolstering human development and efficient use of public resources. We have focused our attention on policies that have a direct impact on the economic transformations that Iraq is now witnessing. Government's concern is now directed towards development of productive sectors as a matter of priority in the development plan. For this purpose It has introduced an initiative involving expansion of agricultural production through boosting productivity and increasing incomes of rural households. In addition Government is aware of the necessity to reconsider public spending in favor of investment that will generate job opportunities and secure decent living for our people. The Strategy for the Reduction of Poverty in Iraq comes at a time when our dear Iraqi people are looking forward to breaking free from the chains of poverty that have deprived them of healthy, conscious and happy lives for long decades in a country abounding in natural resources that should have been geared to the ac~1ievement of an overall development to ensure free and decent lives for Iraqis. Furthermore, the fact that the launching of this Strategy has coincided with the forthcoming transition to a new stage whose features are to be determined by the results of the parliamentary elections in 2010 will provide the leaders and experts of this country with an historical opportunity for investing in the alleviation of poverty in Iraq in light of the outcomes stated in this document that address the specific factors for the reduction of poverty and lifting the poor to a better living status. It pleases me to note that the Poverty Reduction Strategy embodied in this national document which exhibits a cohesion of economic and social policies as reflected by the extensive consultative process involving many parties concerned with its implementation, including our partners from international and civil society organizations, has set justice and fairness as the course it has adopted in the investment of national resources. While we give our blessings to this document for its orientation to target the poor and ensure good and efficient use of resources, we are confident that the State's institutions and Government organs will facilitate the implementation of this Strategy and support it to meet the challenges it is facing. On behalf of myself and members of the Council of Ministers I would like to express our appreciation of the efforts of all those who worked diligently and seriously to produce this document which we have reviewed with interest. I would refer in particular to the gentlewomen and gentlemen members of the High Committee for Poverty Reduction Policies and the National Advisory Team. I also express my appreciation of the support given by the World Bank to this project. In conclusion, I would urge all citizens of Iraq and all those responsible in Government to use this document in gearing efforts towards the reduction of poverty in Iraq. Nuri Kamil AI-Maliki, Prime Minister. Republic of Iraq November, 2009 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 D- FOREWORD, BY THE WORLD BANK Poverty reduction is a concern for all countries at all levels of development. Yet the macroeconomic, structural, and social circumstance of every country is unique; and every country requires a plan that is individual, deliberate, and accountable to those who must live with its consequences. To be successful over the long run, a national poverty reduction strategy must be grounded in rigorous analysis of solid data, open minded consideration of a range of solutions, and a process that involves key stakeholders. As evidenced by the present document, the Government of Iraq has worked hard and thoughtfully to produce such a strategy. Toward that end, the Iraq Poverty Reduction Strategy lays out a forward-looking framework of policies and programs to reduce poverty by enabling the poor to live healthy, productive lives as active members in society. The strategy is an important development milestone for the people of Iraq. No less significant than the strategy itself, the process that produced the strategy represents a remarkable achievement. Working under extraordinarily difficult circumstances in exceptionally little time, the government of Iraq has demonstrated its commitment and ability to rebuilding operational research capacity and institutionalizing evidence­ based policy making. The team credited with this ambitious undertaking is the Poverty Reduction Strategy High Committee (PRSHC) of Iraq, a high-level technical commission convened by the Minister of Planning and Development Cooperation (MOPDC), H.E. Ali Ghalib Baban, on September 16, 2006. The PRSHC represents a broad range of Iraqi institutions including Parliament, key development ministries, the Kurdistan Regional Government and the academic community. The chair of the PRSHC is Dr. Mehdi Muhsin AI-Alak, Undersecretary of Ministry of Planning and Development Cooperation. Its other distinguished members include the honorable Amira Muhammed Hussain (Parliament), AabidaAhmed Dakhil (Parliament),AlaaAI-Saadoon (Parliament), Zaki Abdul Wahab AI-Jadir (MOPDC), Abdullah Mohammed Bandar (Prime Minister's Office), Ali Al Zubaidy (Ministry of Education), lhsan Jaafar Ahmed AI-Khayyat (Ministry of Health), Riyadh Fakher Khalaf AI-Hashimi (Ministry ofTrade ), Layla Kadhim AzizAI-Azzawe (Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs), Hussain Mansour Al-Safi (Ministry of Justice), Mahmood Othman Maaroof (Ministry of Planning, Kurdistan Regional Government), Nidhal Abdul Kareem Jawad (Ministry of Finance), Najah Jalil Khalil (Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, Kurdistan Regional Government), Jamal Ameen (Ministry of Planning, Kurdistan Regional Government), Kareem Mohammed Hamzah (Baghdad University), Najlaa Ali Murad (Central Organization for Statistics and Information Technology COSIT), and Abdulla Hassan Mathi (COSIT). The technical work of the committee was supported by the newly created Data Analysis Unit (DAU) within COSIT, their counterparts in the Kurdistan Regional Statistical Office and an interministerial Technical Working Group. Financial resources to develop this strategy were provided through the World Bank Iraq Trust Fund (ITF), a multilateral initiative launched in early 2004 to help donor nations channel resources and coordinate their support for the reconstruction and development of Iraq<"'. In addition to channeling the resources of the ITF, the World Bank assisted in capacity building by providing technical advice and training in specialized areas- including state of the art methods for household survey field work, welfare analysis and Results-Based-Management. The World Bank support has largely been delivered through the Household Survey and Policies for Poverty Reduction (HSPPR), a project executed by the Ministry of Planning and Development Cooperation (MOPDC). Since no systematic household survey had been carried out in Iraq since (1) ITF is a Bank-administered component of the International Reconstruction Fund Facility for Iraq (IRFFI). The Bank-administered component of IRFFI has channeled nearly a half billion dollars in financing to projects in education, infrastructure, rural development, health, and private sector development, and it has provided substantial technical assistance to help improve Iraq's banking sector, public financial management, and social safety nets. International donors to the ITF include the governments of Australia, Canada, European Community, Finland, Iceland, India, Japan, Republic of Korea, Kuwait, Netherlands, Norway, Qatar, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, United Kingdom, and United States. NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 E- 1988, the first objective of technical partnership was to create a socio-economic data base to serve as a foundation for evidence-based policy formulation. Financing under HSPPR was used to help design and implement a nationwide income and expenditure survey in which comprehensive data were rigorously collected from more than 18,000 Iraqi households. The Bank played a support and advisory role during the year-long field survey - helping to upgrade the skills of Iraqi statistical staff. The subsequent analytic phase under HSPPR began in January 2008. Data representing more than 120,000 individuals were carefully analyzed in order to create an up-to-date profile of the character, causes, and consequences of poverty in Iraq. Setting an official poverty line represented a particularly important step in this phase. Using entirely Iraq-specific data, the High Committee set ID 76,896 per person per month as the minimum requirement in order to purchase sufficient calories to maintain physical health, as well as an allowance for basic non-food items such as shelter and clothing. The poverty line was adopted and made official through endorsement by the Council of Ministers in April 2009. The analytical phase culminated in a series of background papers"' produced by the PRSHC and a synthesis document produced jointly by the PRSHC and the World Bank. The present strategy document culminates the final phase of the HS PPR project. Two achievements in particular need to be singled out. First, despite the diverse interests and many constituencies represented by individual members, the High Committee conceptualized poverty as a shared national responsibility. As a team, the committee was scrupulous in working across sectoral, institutional, ethnic, and political boundaries. This collaborative approach was reinforced by a rigorous process of consultation - not only with members of the parliament and the many government entities, but with civil society and the private sector as well. Feedback was additionally solicited from the donor community, including the UN, the World Bank, and the bilateral development agencies of Japan, Canada, the United Kingdom.and the United States. Second, the creation of an integrated national poverty reduction strategy has required the acquisition of new technical skills and the development of new habits of institutional behavior. Following years of civil strife and warfare, the institutional fabric of Iraq and the quality of governance was in tatters- from outdated technologies and absence of data resulting from international isolation and budgetary neglect, to the lack of an inter-institutional mechanism for poverty reduction. Against this backdrop, dedicated civil servants persevered during difficult times and later renewed their skills to take on the important work that underpins this technically rigorous and inclusive strategy. The quality of the present document is evidence of the diligence and commitment of the High Committee members and the many technicians, researchers, and civil service professionals who supported their work. Hedi Larbi Director Middle East Department (2) Six background papers were prepared on the topics of income, the labor market, education, health, safety nets and gender. -F NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The High Committee for Poverty Reduction Strategy in Iraq expresses its thanks and appreciation to all those who provided assistance and support during the preparation of the National Poverty Reduction Strategy in Iraq leading to the adoption of policies and programs aiming at improving the conditions of the poor in our country which abounds in resources and promising potentials. We mention in particular: Their Excellencies heads of the three bodies (the Presidency, Council of Ministers and Council of Representatives) and their deputies for supporting and upholding the launching of the Strategy. His Excellency the Minister of Planning, Mr. Ali Ghalib Baban for his continued support and care for the Committee's work. His Excellency the Secretary-General of the Council of Ministers, Mr. Ali Muhsin Ismail, for chairing and his auspices to the Food Ration Reform Committee. Their Excellencies members of the Council of Ministers who upheld the launching of the Strategy, particularly the Ministers of Education, Health, Finance, Labour and Social Affairs, Trade, Justice, Higher Education and Scientific Research and Head of the National Commission for Investment for supporting their respective ministries' representatives in the High Committee. Government of Kurdistan Region, particularly their Excellencies the Ministers of Planning and Labour and Social Affairs, for supporting their respective representatives in the High Committee. The High Committee also expresses its deepest thanks and appreciation for the distinguished role which the World Bank played throughout the stages of the Household Survey and Poverty Reduction project, notably the technical support in preparing the national strategy. Thanks are especially due to:, Mr. AI-Hadi Al-Arabi, Director Middle East Department / World Bank, for his enormous efforts in following up on the support extended to the project. Ms. Susan Razzaz, Project Task Team Leader, for her successful management of the project activities and technical support for building the national capacities in Strategy preparations. "World Bank experts, Dr. Mohammed Hussain Bakir, Dr. Basil Al-Hussaini and Dr. Giovanni Vecchi, for their technical support. The High Committee's thanks and appreciation are also due to the Advisory Team led by Dr. Amal Sh lash and the experts Dr. Hassan Lateef AI-Zubidy and Dr. Kareem Mohammed Hamza, who worked hard and mindfully to finalise the Strategy document. Finally, thanks are due to all the technical and supporting staff, particularly Miss Najlaa Ali Murad, Director of Living Conditions, and the project management team, particularly Mr. ZakiAI-Jadir The Committee, while expressing its wishes for the progress and welfare of our dear people, looks forward to a safe and prosperous future where, by virtue of the capability, enthusiasm and effort of the good people, all aspects of poverty and deprivation shall diminish as would benefit Iraq, the land of civilizations and noble human values. Dr.Mehdi M. AI-Alak Head of the High Committee for Poverty Reduction NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 G- INTRODUCTION In light of the Joint Cooperation Agreement between the Ministry of Planning and the World Bank, a High Committee for Poverty Reduction Strategies was formed. It comprises three parliamentarians and a number of representatives of ministries, universities and the Government of Kurdistan Region. The Agreement contains four principal phases; provision of a database and statistical indicators on the socio­ economic situation of households in Iraq through the implementation of an extensive field survey (IHSES, 2007). The other phases include preparation of the following documents: • Poverty line in Iraq • Poverty Analysis in Iraq • Poverty Reduction Strategy in Iraq and its Summary The comprehensive report on Iraq Household Socio­ economic Survey was launched on 12 January 2009. Likewise, the Poverty Line report was launched and presented to the esteemed Council of Ministers in its session of 23 January 2009. These two important products provided the High Committee for Poverty Reduction Strategy with the basis for the preparation of the Poverty Analysis and Poverty Reduction Strategy documents. The first document, Poverty Analysis in Iraq, addressed poverty profile, where the poor concentrate and the disparities between governorates and between rural and urban in each governorate. It also discussed the major poverty­ re I ate d dimensions; education, health, infrastructures, population, government transfers within the framework of social protection net and food ration. The second document, Poverty Reduction Strategy in Iraq (PRS), derives its general objective - reduction of poverty - and outcomes - higher income from work for the poor from work, improved health status of the poor, expansion and improvement of education for the poor, a better living environment for the poor, effective social protection for the poor and less inequality between poor women and men -. Each outcome is linked with a set of outputs that have to be attained, the activities required to be implemented, the assumptions to be set up, in addition to means of verification and implementing authorities, in the light of; Poverty Profile analysis and its disparities included in the first document. The Strategy falls into five chapters. Chapter One presents the foundations for building the PRS through a description of the process of its preparation and its fundamental elements. Chapter Two deals with the challenges that PRS faces; establishment of security and stability, ensuring good governance, securing equitable distribution, diversification of growth sources and alleviation of the negative impacts of economic reform on the poor. Chapter three deals with computing the national poverty line and the derived indicators, poverty characteristics, spatial distribution and the relationship between poverty and unemployment. Chapter four represents the principal component of the Strategy. It introduces the Strategy's vision for poverty reduction through presenting, in detail, each one of the six outcomes and their corresponding outputs. It also presents the assumptions, activities and implementation partners. Chapter five, the final one, deals with monitoring and evaluation aspects. The document is supplemented by a set of annexes giving the detailed matrix of the Strategy. This effort, that has been prepared with the support of the World Bank, is the first official attempt to measure poverty and build a strategy for its alleviation. The High Committee for the Poverty Reduction Strategy and the Advisory Team hope that the Strategy will find its way towards achievement in the interests of the poor people in Iraq and become among the top priorities of the Five-year National Development Plan (2010-2014) and other plans and budgets. NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 1- CHAPTER ONE : ELEMENTS OF BUILDING THE POVERTY REDUCTION STRATEGY The Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS) in Iraq has been conceived to address the growing rates of poverty after decades of wars, economic sanctions, wasted resources and halting of the wheel of development, which all combined to deepen the problem. However, the government's options to tackle this problem seem to be multiple, but difficult. They demand a political will backed up by resources and a planning vision in which social and economic dimensions are integrated. The PRS was prepared on the basis of a consultative process that involved wide participation of parliamentarians, government senior officials, representatives of the Government of Kurdistan Region, non-governmental organisations and academia within the framework of a high committee sponsored by the Ministry of Planning and chaired by the Under-secretary. The High Committee was supported by a team of World Bank experts. The Strategy is part of an extensive project which is the fruit of a constructive cooperation with the World Bank, comprises several aspects and endeavors to achieve diversified political, economic and statistical goals. On the political plane, the project aimed at emphasizing the government's commitment to alleviate poverty, support efforts to increase the awareness of the decision-makers in the country on the magnitude, dimension and serious implications of poverty problem on Iraqi society. • On the economic plane, the project aimed at drawing up general frameworks and economic programmes and policies that seek, as an ultimate goal, to alleviate poverty and establish integration with the Five-year National Development Plan 2010- 2014, with federal and local budgets, in addition to the activities carried out by civil society organisations, the private sector and donors. The project will also assist in upgrading the Federal Budget estimates in favour of the poor and aim at improving their living conditions. • On the statistical plane, the project aimed at providing indicators for monitoring the living standard and identifying the poverty problem and its present and future trends with a view to strengthening efforts to address it. • On the international cooperation plane, the project represents a successful model of constructive cooperation with the World Bank in seeking assistance from international expertise and support of national capabilities. The Poverty Reduction Strategy was prepared in light of the conclusions of the Poverty Analysis Report and the findings of IHSES 2007, together with a set of background papers. The survey provided data contributing to a better understanding of the economic and social determinants of poverty , disparity and assessment of the impact of policies concerned with the alleviation of poverty. It also provided an informatic and analytical base which made possible: • Determining the concept of poverty in Iraq. • Computing the national poverty line to distinguish the poor from others. • Drawing a geographical map of poverty. • Determining the characteristics of the poor The results of the analysis formed the basis for formulating the outcomes that lead to the achievement of the overall goal of the Strategy; alleviation of poverty. -2 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 1.1 Starting points for building a poverty reduction strategy in Iraq In order to establish an institutional, economic, social and political base to encompass the poverty reduction issue and to transform the attitude towards poverty and the poor from a framework of charitable action into a developmental project based on the empowerment of the poor and assisting them to strengthen their integration into the society and playing their role in economic development and social cohesion, the Strategy has adopted a set of focal points: • Emphasis on government commitment. If there is a political will to adopt the Strategy its execution will be guaranteed, for government intervention holds an extremely important place in all the topics of this strategy. Governments often try to deny the existence of poverty in their countries or play down the size of this problem. The adoption by the Iraqi government of PRS is the more important step on the path towards the attainment of this goal. • Aligning with the national efforts to achieve the millennium developmental goals as regards poverty, health and education. Furthermore, the Strategy forms a realistic base for formulating policies and implementation mechanisms for these goals. To this end, the Strategy is considered as a practical framework for drawing up medium and long-term policies for mobilizing domestic resource and required international support. • Integration with the Five-year National Development Plan 2010-2014 and the Annual Budget. Government commitment to implement the Strategy will ensure that the Five-year National Development Plan adopts the Strategy's outcomes as part of its priorities and implements the activities at central sectoral institutions and governorates levels. • Viewing poverty as a multi-sectoral phenomenon; social, economic, political and cultural, in addition to the security sector, requires integrity of policies. Also, due to the interrelations between poverty­ related social, economic and environmental determinants, simultaneous measures taken in all the sectors would have higher positive impact on poverty reduction than those taken within each sector in isolation from other sectors. • The Strategy adopts the principle of targeting the poor to rectify and enhance the efficiency of safety nets programmes'", e.g. the public distribution system and social safety net assistance. • Adoption a perspective that balances between an immediate assistance for poverty alleviation and reducing the number of the poor in the long-run. This could be done through laying emphasis on increased productivity and taking measures to reduce dependence on social care. In this sense, social safety programmes become an integral part of the development process and the emphasis on increasing productivity. • Providing an opportunity for extensive dialogue 011 identification and understanding the importance of diversified, especially growth that depends on the development of the private sector and its relationship to poverty reduction. This dialogue also covers macro-economic issues, alternative policy options within an appropriate institutional framework comprising the government's partners in development. This will deepen society's awareness on macro-economic restrictions and formulate realistic alternatives for a macro-policy that aim at growth sustainability and contribute to the alleviation of poverty. • Emphasise the involvement of the parliament in all stages of the preparation of the strategy in order to stimulate the political will to adopt and support the Strategy. • Adopting the principle of partnership and coordination among the various institutions (3) The Social Safety Net is a group of programmes providing protection for the poor and vulnerable groups from falling into poverty and its consequences. In Iraq it includes the food ration, the social protection net operated by the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs and pension and social security systems. NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 3- Box (1) Four elements embodied in the Poverty Reduction Strategy to achieve its goals: • Creating income-generating opportunities: creating employment and jobs for the poor, which requires combined efforts by government, the private sector and civil society. • Empowerment: Empowering the poor to be cognizant of and able to exercise their economic, social and political rights , make decisions affecting their lives, to be aware of their problems and needs and express their ambitions. The government, private sector and civil society should take a serious part in the empowerment process. • Capacity Building: building the capacities of the poor to qualify them for work and increase their productivity to enable them to satisfy their needs. The government, private sector and civil society should assist in realizing this . • Social safety : To establish an effective social safety net in which the private sector and civi l society take part. of the government structure, in order to ensure the achievement of the Strategy's goals. • Cooperation with civil society organisations and the private sector. The PRS believes that achievement of its major goal require real participation of all relevant parties, especially civil society organisations and the private sector within the framework of a comprehensive approach for development and poverty reduction. • Emphasis on the need for international support in funding and expertise areas. • The need for capacity building in the area of policy formulation,planning, implementation and monitoring and evaluation at both central and local government levels, in addition to building the capacity of the private sector and civil society organization to strengthen their effective participation in implementation, monitoring and evaluation. • Emphasis on institutionalization of a periodic monitoring and evaluation system that is integrated within government mechanisms to ensure implementation and revision of the Strategy. • Setting up communication plan to ensure communication of the Strategy's contents between the government and other appropriate parties including the poor themselves. -4 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 CHAPTER TWO: CHALLENGES FACING THE POVERTY REDUCTION STRATEGY Modest GDP (non-oil) rates, high unemployment rates, volatile per capita share of income and consumer expenditure, all indicate the persistence of the economy's problems and the failure of the economic management's performance to achieve growth and economic recovery. PRS is facing serious challenges, mainly: ensuring security, good governance and equitable income distribution, diversification of growth sources under market economy and alleviation of the negative impacts of economic reform on the poor. The government's commitment to adopt the necessary policies and measures to address these challenges constitutes an essential prerequisite for the PRS to ac~Iieve its goals. 2.1 Ensuring security and stability The National Report on Status of Human Development, 2008, revealed important aspects of the deterioration of the Iraqi individual's security. An opinion poll, on which human security indexes were based, shows that economic and social security is not less important than political security and that the existing situation is an outcome of decades of economic and political instability and continuous deterioration of human security in its broad sense. The report also shows that the security situation impacted positively on raising the value of human development index in Kurdistan Region, which reached 0.659 as compared with 0.623 for Iraq. The IHSES, 2007 findings supported this fact; the governorates of Kurdistan Region recorded the lowest level of poverty (Duhouk 9.5%, Erbil 3. 7% and Sulaimaniya 3.3%). By contrast, the results of Employment and Unemployment Survey for 2008 indicated that 84% of households that changed residence had been in urban areas and 16% in rural areas. Among the reasons for this change of residence were displacement (37%) and migration.(29%). The IHSES findings in Iraq indicated that 8.1 % of households were exposed to acts of violence during the survey year 2007 and that the frequency of these acts was higher for richest households (the higher 20% of households), which stood at 8.6%, against 6.3% for poorest households (the lower 20% of households). Despite the fact that bad security situation affect the population in general, its impact on the poor is deeper due to their inability to face the consequences of this situation; loss of opportunities for income earning, high prices, scarcity of commodities, and difficult access to basic services. It is obvious that such conditions have negative impact on the poor; loss of their job and their physical assets. Undoubtedly, the possibility of reducing poverty remains limited when instability escalates and produces economic and social conditions unfavorable for the establishment of human security. 2.2 Ensuring good governance The government sets the realization of "good governance" at the top of its priorities in the establishment of an institutional state, management of the economy and enhancement of public administration, performance and fighting corruption. These priorities also include other measures to upgrade the political, economic and social structure, enhancing government performance, improving decision-making mechanisms, and formulating policies to establish and develop institutions supportive to economic growth in such a way as to create a favorable environment for the implementation of the Strategy. If the security challenge is subject to short-term variables because of its link with the political situation passing through a transitional stage towards democracy and consolidation of human rights to which the government is committed, ensuring good governance requires long-term structural and political changes whose achievement should be among the first tasks required to lead the PRS to success. 2 .3 Ensuring fair distribution and diversification of growth sources under market economy Economic growth is an essential condition for poverty reduction, but it is not sufficient unless accompanied by an increase of employment opportunities, access for the poor to resources and productive assets and enhancement of opportunities for decent living. Resource allocation policy takes into consideration two principles, namely: • Spatial Equality: (urban/ rural and between geographical regions); and gender equality (between women and men). • Diversification, i.e., diversification of the NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 5- Box (2) PRS and the Five-year National Development Plan (2010-2014) In the context of activating the Iraqi economy the Government adopted a five-year planning methodology as an alternative mechanism to annual work within the state's general budget. It embarked on the preparation of a five-year plan for the years 2010-2014 aiming at - Achieve a significant growth of GDP varying between 10-1 1 % through: • investing in a wide spectrum of sectors estimated between 200-250 billion US dollars. • The government will hopefully contribute by 50-60% of this amount and the private sector and foreign investment by the balance. • Increasing productivity economic sectors. • Doubling oil production . in various - Reduce unemployment rates by one third of their present levels. - Increase participation by women in the Labour­ force -Curb underemployment in the public sector. The preparation of the five-year plan coincided with that of the PRS and in the process there arose the need for linking them with each other and determining common factors between them in order to achieve mutual support between them so that the Strategy's activities and outputs may find wide room in the National Development Plan. The Plan can seek guidance from the tracks PRS has specified, particularly in the area of targeting the poor and poor areas, and the rural ones to be more specific, and particularly in the areas of education, health, infrastructures and housing projects. economy and reducing its dependence on oil in order to increase income sources and diversify economic activity areas so as to allow for wider participation by the private sector including small- and medium-scale businesses. The adoption of poverty reduction by the Five-year Plan 2010-2014, which is included among its general objectives (Part Three) and the adoption of poverty indicators as they were stated in the PRS in the chapter on the Social Situation in Part One, will uphold the achievement of the Strategy's goal. 2.4 Alleviating the negative impacts of economic reform on the poor Since 2003 the Iraqi government has opted for heading towards market economy and agreed to cease open intervention in the economic life. This trend was strengthened as per the economic and financial obligations that Iraq committed to within the framework of the Stand-by Arrangement, 2005 (SBA) to adopt an economic reform programme as part of the requirements of Paris Club Agreement (2004) to reduce Iraq's debts, estimated at 36.8 billion dollars, by 80% on three stages. The reform package aims at achieving the following: • Achieving monetary stability and controlling money supply by the Central Bank. • Eliminating distortions in the price system by lifting restrictions that limit price movements, reducing government subsidy, and raising oil product prices sold at the local market to bring them in line with their global prices. • Minimizing the state's role in the economic activity and restructuring public expenditure in favor of investment expenditure. • Developing work mechanisms of the banking system and activate its role in financing and credit creation. • Privatization of public sector companies Reform of the currency and the fiscal system produced positive results at the macroeconomic level through the success achieved in replacing and stabilizing the currency and introducing acceptable criteria into the banking sector. Since 2004, the monetary and fiscal policies have brought about indirect positive changes towards improvement of income levels and distribution. The monetary policy led to an improvement in individuals' real income as a result of its ability to control inflation rates and achieving constancy in the value of local currency. -6 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 As for the fiscal policy, which was expansionary, it led to an improvement in income distribution in favor of public sector personnel who had been negatively affected as a result of the decline of their real income during the economic sanctions years (1990-2003). On the other hand, other reforms produced negative impacts on the poor. For instance, the policy of reducing government subsidies on oil products led to an increase in the average monthly household spending on the housing, water and fuel group from 13% in 1993 to 29% in 2007 and doubling the share of household expenditure on transport which increased from 5% to over 10% for the years 1993 and 2007 respectively due to the rise of fuel prices. This situation underscores the importance of adopting pro-poor measures to mitigate the negative impacts of these reforms on their livelihood levels. One such measure was the creation of a social protection net system which came into effect in 2006. Box (3) Laws that did not find their way to legislation: Customs Tariffs Law Customs duties were abolished after the war in 2003 and were subsequently replaced by a reconstruction duty at 5%. This rate was expected to be revised to 10% in 2006, but this has not happened yet. The budget's general revenues declined as a result of the abolition of the customs tariff. In order to increase and diversify the Budget's non-oil revenues , legislation of this Customs Tariffs Law will have direct positive impacts on the business sector through rationalization of import and stimulation of domestic production, which will increase job opportunities and their returns for the poor. NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 7- CHAPTER THREE: CHARACTERISTICS OF POVERTY IN IRAQ The starting point for any poverty reduction strategy and a condition for its success is to know who are the poor and where they are geographically concentrated. These are the first steps towards targeting them by the Strategy. A study of the deprivation map (2004) showed that nearly 31 % of households and 34% of individuals suffer from deprivation from basic needs. The rate in rural areas is three times higher than that in urban areas. According to data from the Iraqi Household Social and Economic Survey 2007, there has been a slight increase in the rate of deprived households due to rising rate of deprivation from infrastructure (water and electricity) and the exceptional circumstances prevailed during the survey year. The national report on "the status of human development" 2008 revealed another picture of poverty that focused on the sub-components of human poverty (percentage of underweight children (weight for age), percentage of population deprived of access to potable water, adult illiteracy rate and probability at birth of not surviving to age of 40 years). The index was 19%. These rates show various indicators of poverty and deprivation that differ in their methodologies and definitions of poverty. IHSES 2007 findings made it possible to measure poverty indicators, the first of which was the poverty line at national level (Table 1) Table 1: Major indicators of poverty in Iraq 2007 Indicator Poverty line (ID000/individual/ month) Poverty rate (%) Number of poor (million population) Poverty gap (%) National Food Non-food Total Urban Rural Total Urban Rural Total Urban Rural '''""'' 76.9 34.3 42.6 22.9 16.1 39.3 6.9 3.5 3.4 4.5 2.7 9.0 3.1 Estimating the national poverty line Estimation of the national poverty line was based on computing the cost of calories necessary to maintain the Iraqi individual's health which amount, on average, to 2332 calories, taking into account age, gender, weight, and physical activity, both in urban and rural areas. IHSES 2007 data helped estimate the cost per calorie at about ID 0.482. Thus, the average cost of monthly per capita nutritional requirement amounts to ID34,250. This is equal to food poverty line. Based on expenditure of households at the food poverty line, the non-food poverty line for goods and services has been estimated at ID 42,646 individual/month. By adding the cost of basic food and cost of basic non-food requirements, the poverty line in Iraq would equal 76,896 dinars/individual/month, which means 22.9% , i.e., about 6.9 million Iraqis, fall below the poverty line. It is to be noted that expenditure on the basis of which this line was computed, is based on the economic definition applied internationally. this includes, in addition to cash purchases, non-cash expenditure, including the value of imputed rent for households that do not pay rent, because they live in houses they own or for other reasons. It also include the value of consumer goods which households obtain without paying for, such as the commodities they produce or those they get in return for work or as assistance. Expenditure was computed at market rather than paid prices, including expenditure on the ration card items which amount to ID 12,100 per month. It is also to be noted that the poverty line has been computed at unified prices in order to adjust for price disparities at various parts of Iraq throughout the survey's period of time which lasted for one full year, which renders the above comparison correct. It is worth mentioning that distribution of individuals according to average per capita expenditure revealed that most of them concentrate around the poverty line and only few fall at a distance from the line. This means that a drop in income of a large proportion of the non-poor (losing a job or a breadwinner, sickness of a member of the household, etc.) or an increase in their consumer requirements is expected to draw them below the poverty line (Figure 1 ). -8 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 .01 22.9% of the population below poverty line (/) ~ .006 :~ "O .!: 0 ai E .004 :, C: 77 .1 % Higher than poverty line close to average monthly expenditure ID. 77000 Small number much higher than poverty line Relatively small number poor whose average expenditure .002 is very far from poverty 34 77 / 150 250 350 450 i Average per capita expenditure ID. 1000 per month Poverty line for each individual of household per month Figure (1) : Poverty Line And Distribution Of Average Monthly Expenditure 550 The poverty gap'" in Iraq has been estimated at 4.5%, which means that consumption of the majority of the poor is very close to the poverty line and that a their share of government expenditure on public services, can rescue them from poverty. However, the size of the gap varies markedly between relative improvement in their income or increasing governorates as shown in Figure 2. 20 18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 ■ Poor proportion to total governorate population ■ Poverty gap Figure (2) : Poverty gap According To Governorates % l (4) The poverty gap indicates the size of the gap between the poor's incomes and the poverty line level. It is computed in absolute terms by sufficient money units required to raise the consumption levels of all the poor to the poverty line. It is calculated as a percentage of the total value of consumption of all the population when the consumption of each of them is equal to the poverty line. NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 9- 3.2 Rural are poorer than urban areas Distribution of the poor varies between rural and urban areas. While about two-thirds of the population live in urban areas, half the number of the poor exist in rural areas, which reveals that the economic and social conditions in rural areas are considered a poverty-generating environment . To a certain extent this is due to the fact that fertility is higher in rural areas as the annual population growth rate is 3.5% as compared to 2. 7% in urban areas. The poor's economic activities in rural areas are concentrated in agriculture, hunting and forests (56%) and building and construction (14%). They take jobs that require no high skills or education such as handicrafts ( 17%) and primary vocations ( 15% ). 56% of working people are at age 10 and over and work without pay, mostly women, of which about two-thirds are in the two poorer categories. Box (4) Rural Development Policies: Top Priority For Poverty Reduction Despite the fact that rural are poorer than urban areas and of higher population growth rates, the investment budget still favors urban over rural areas. For instance, the agricultural sector secured 5% of the budget allocations for 2008 which is the second lowest percentage. Poverty is expected to aggravate in rural areas under arid conditions and decline of Iraq's water quota from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers and absence of a water policy compatible with the seriousness of the challenges, particularly as there are signs of mass migration from some marsh regions and some villages in Basrah. On the other hand, backwardness of the agricultural sector, the set of problems related to patterns of agricu ltural ownersh ip and management and the irrigation and marketing systems may all obliterate the positive impacts that the poverty reduction policies may produce Total urben rural 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% ■ poor ■ non poor Figure (3) Distribution of the poor between rural and urban (%} 3.3 Poor governorates Governorates differ as to the poverty rate and the poverty gap. While over 40% of the population of some governorates are poor (Muthanna 49%, Babil 41 %, Salahuddin 40% ), the poverty rate in other governorates is less than 10% as in the governorates of Kurdistan Region. The governorates in which the rate of the poor is high, the poverty gap widens. (See map). On the other hand, 13% of the poor are found in the capital Baghdad alone and about 11 % in Basrah. In rural areas the poverty rate rises in the governorates of Muthanna (75%), Babil (61 %), and Wasit (60% ). -10 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 Box (5) Poverty Kurdistan Region Is Less Acute Findings of the Socio-economic Survey revealed that poverty rate in Kurdistan region is lower than that in Iraq generally. The Region enjoys different poverty-related socio­ economic characteristics . There is a lower proportion of population in rural areas in comparison with the rest of the country (21 % against 30%). Fertility rates in the Region are also lower (3 .8 children/woman against 4.3 children/woman for total Iraq). Nevertheless, female participation in the Labour force in the Region, as in the rest of the country, is low. The geographical position of the region, being bordered by Iran, Turkey and Syria , encouraged an active trade movement and exchange of information and commodities with the Region across the border while the rest of Iraq had been secluded and isolated from international community since 1990. Likewise, there has been further development in the Region since 2003 due to the stability of the security situation which covered all the Region's areas. The Survey results revealed that less than 1 % of households were exposed to acts of violence related to the security situation, against 6.6% for Iraq as a whole . The business environment in the Region has been encouraging. It attracted foreign investment, thanks to an investment encouraging law and ease of obtaining credit. Unemployment rates have been low, standing at 6.1 %, against 11 . 7% at national level. School enrolment rates , too, have been relatively high in comparison with Iraq as a whole. Net primary school enrolment rate was 90% , against 85% for Iraq, and 47% for intermediate schools, against 37% for Iraq. The high enrolment rates reflect the prosperity that the Region has recently enjoyed more than it does the historical disparity, for adult illiteracy rate in the Region is higher than total Iraq (27%against 19%). The health sector is one in which the Region did not reach the levels attained in other parts of the country. 10% of patients did not have access to medical care in the Region in comparison with about 6% at countrywide level. Besides, access to primary health care is less available, as the average distance to the nearest primary health care center is 7.4 km as compared to 6.6 km in Iraq. On the other hand , 55% of housing units are connected to sanitation network or septic tanks in the Region, against 77% in Iraq as a whole. RIIO<)/~O,,tr'ty o/,. t:::::::] 3 .0-13 1 4 - 27 - 28 - 37 - 38 - 4 9 , ......... - "'--. ­ Karul~ .. Map (1) Rates of poverty in the Iraqi governorates 3.4 Disparity in expenditure is less than that in income Data indicate that the richer quintile of households gets 43% of income, while the poorer quintile gets 7% of income at Iraq level. However, the disparity seems less sharp with regard to expenditure, for the share of the richer households is 39% of total household expenditure, while that of the poorer households is 9%. Despite the fact that there are various methods to measure inequality, Gini's Coefficient is viewed as the most popular. Its values vary from O for perfect equality to 1 for perfect inequality in income/expenditure distribution. These two levels are certainly very extreme and far from practical reality. Inequality between the poor and the rich is considered low in Iraq in comparison with world countries. Comparison of Gini's coefficient for 128 countries ,for which Gini's coefficient values are available, indicates that Iraq ranks 18th, the coefficient being 0.309 as compared with Egypt 0.344 , Algeria 0.353, Yemen 0.377, Iran 0.384, Jordan 0.388, Morocco 0.395 and Turkey 0.436. Lorenz curve expresses, in graph form, income (expenditure) inequality. The nearer the curve to the equality line the less NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 11 - Box (6) Resource allocation policies are ineffectual Reconsideration of resource allocation priorities between governorates according to poverty rates in them will reduce disparities in poverty distribution. It was decided to work out estimates of fiscal allocations in the Federal Budget in accordance with two principles: • the number of population in each governorate, and • the governorates' deprivation level However, the principle of deprivation remained inoperative, due to lack of agreement on deprivation criterions The first criterion proved to be unsuitable for poverty alleviation, for Muthanna governorate, which IHSES showed to be the poorer, obtains the lowest portion of these allocations on the basis of the number of its population which amount to 2.5% of Iraq's population. No consideration was taken of the magnitude of damage and neglect it had suffered all the past years . 1 Poorer 7% 4 22% 16% Figure(4) Distribution of income in Iraq by quintile is inequality. In theory, the conformity of Lorenz curve with the equality line indicates absence of inequality, i.e., perfect equality. The closeness of the graph in Fig. 6 to the equality line indicates that the disparity in expenditure in Iraq is low. 4 22% 1 Poorer 9% Figure (5) Distribution of expenditure in Iraq by quintile 1 oo~-- - - - - -A c tu-al C u~-e--,,-,- -- - .- - .- - ,-,-,,-,,-,-,- 80 -- ---- Pem,ct EqoallO •••••••• •• 60 40 20 0 / 0 , , , , , , , , , 20 , , , , , , , , , , 40 , , , 60 Population (cumulative%) Figure (6) 80 100 Lorenz curve for expenditure in Iraq, for 2007 3.5 Poverty and unemployment IHSES 2007 data indicate weak correlation between poverty and unemployment. While poverty rate was 39% in rural areas and 16% in urban areas, unemployment was 11 % in rural areas and 12% in urban areas. This could well be attributed to the correlation between poverty and low return from work for workers who constitute 89% of the Labour force in rural areas, due to drop in productivity. Poverty also correlates more with the rise of fertility rates and the socio-economic and environmental -12 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 characteristics of the rural areas than with unemployment. This explains the decline in the rate of participation in economic activity, for 57% of the population at working age are outside economic activity (neither employed nor seeking employment). For women the rate is 87%. On the other hand, the relationship between poverty and underemployment cannot be denied. The Employment and Unemployment Survey for 2008 confirmed high underemployment rate due to less working hours for individuals aged 15 and over, which was 23% for males and 53% for females. In urban areas the rate was 21 % and in rural areas 43%. NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 13- Chapter Four : The Strategy's Perspective On Poverty Alleviation The Strategy is based on the Logical Framework Approach which is a method for logical thinking and analysis. It is also a suitable methodology for the preparation and application of poverty reduction programmes. This approach is based on a set of concepts that can be used in planning, designing and evaluation, including: • Goal: is the ultimate target which is to be attained in the long term through achieving its related outcomes. The general goal of the Strategy is" poverty reduction". • Outcomes: are a set of results to be achieved by the Strategy which together lead to the attainment of the Strategy's general goal. Each outcome is of a multi­ sector nature and is achieved through a set of sectoral outputs in light of certain assumptions. The Strategy has set up the following six outcomes: ❖ Ahigherincomeforthepoorfromwork ❖ Improved health status of the poor ❖ Dissemination and upgrading of education for the ❖ poor ❖ A better living environment for the poor ❖ Effective social protection for the poor ❖ Less inequality between poor women and men 87 activities. • Indicators: Indicators measure the extent to which an activity or an output has been implemented and how far their related impact been achieved. The Strategy has set indicators against each outcome, output or activity. During its implementation period, the Strategy endeavors to alleviate poverty by adopting goals that are consistent with the Five-year National Development Plan and national efforts to achieve the millennium development goals. In light of the improvement achieved in food security indicators, child and maternal mortality rates, schools enrolment rates since 2004, and assuming that the implementation of the Five-year Plan has been initiated and the political and security situation stabilized, it is expected that poverty rate be reduced by 30% of its 2007 level. The six main parts of this chapter include a presentation of the six areas that have been formulated in light of their actual reality as revealed by the survey results of analysis of the major outcomes. These parts also include a presentation of the logical framework derived from these outcomes. Targeted indicator (2015) 16 • Outputs: A set of short-term results that should be achieved to attain the outcomes. Each output falls within a specific sector and represents the goods and services or practices provided and supplied within the sector. The Strategy's six outcomes comprise 27 outputs. Base indicator (2007) 22.9 • Assumptions: Describe the condition that should be achieved at output level if the outcome is to be achieved through a set of corresponding outputs. It is beyond the control of the implementing authorities. • Activities: Actions that should be implemented within a specific period of time in order to achieve a certain output. Implementation of activities requires mobilization of physical, human, technical and informatic resources in order to produce certain outputs or contribute to their production. The Strategy's outputs comprise 0 5 10 15 20 Figure (7) The goal is to reduce the poverty rate by one third (%) -14 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 25 Figure (8) Structure of Poverty Reduction Strategy POVERTY REDUCTION IN IRAQ General goal di .c: -::~ 0 0 -; 3: E E 0 0 -~ ~ ... 0 di 0 .c: 0. en i: "' :! ·;; ~ < co - 0 di 0 .c: 0. - di - .c: o---C 0 di rn E :, di -> s e rn 0. .c: E.:: - CV di .c: "' :! ·;; ti < :! en C . :s g ~ 0. C) di 0. ..c: ::, - "O ... C: 0 "' -C C: O 0 ~~ C: c., ·- ::, E -a G) G) rn -rn o i5 "' :! ·s; ti < N "' G) :;::: ·;; ti < :! 4.1 Higher Income For The Poor From Work Low income is one of the major causes of impoverishment. The approach which the Strategy has adopted for reducing poverty is to achieve sustainable economic growth correlated with increasing productivity, creation of job opportunities and provision of soft lending. However, this does not constitute an alternative to the social policies related to empowerment of the poor themselves, and improving their access to health and educational resources because these guarantee for them "' di :;::: ·;; n < -- = .. = .... ! E .. ,::, ..Q = i?:''" ; g ~ E CT 0 .~ ~ "' 0 "' 0 j Q. "' :! ·;; ~ < ~ Outcomes (6) Outcomes (87) gathering the fruits of growth and development, as well as enhancement of social safety net that protects the poor and vulnerable groups. IHSES results indicate a decline in the poor's share of income, which is attributable to the drop in work productivity which exceeds the value of weekly wage of the non-poor by ID 28,000 over that earned by the poor for equal work hours. (See table 2) Table 2: Working hours, return per hour and value of weekly wage Poor Non-poor Weekly working hours Hour/week 37.8 38.4 Earning per hour (ID 1000) 2.1 2.8 Value of weekly wage (ID 1000) 70.4 107.5 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 15- The decline of the poor's income may also be attributed to the rise of economic dependency rates (Number of household members divided by the number of working members) which amount for poor households to 1 :5, being double the rate for richer households, 1 :2.3. This also applies to the age dependency rate (Number of household members outside working age divided by number of members at working age) which amounts for poor households to 1.6 against each individual at working age. For rich households the said rate is 0.6, which reflects the rise offertility rates for poor households. Likewise, income sources explain to a certain extent the decline of the poor's income from work. The rate of unpaid workers in agriculture is 29% for the poor, against 11 % for non-poor. Also, 38% of the poor are employed in the private sector which is characterized by low productivity and predominance of informal work. 1.Higher income for the poor from work Increasing work productivity for the poor In view of a higher rate of poverty in rural than in urban areas, the factors that explain the drop of income of agriculture workers require raising the productivity of agricultural work as an essential starting point for increasing returns from agricultural work. This has led the Strategy to adopt the first output "Factors for increasing productivity of agricultural work were made available to the poor" on the assumption that the poor will benefit from productivity increasing factors that will be achieved through the activities related to the output. Since half of the poor in Iraq live in the countryside agricultural and non-agricultural rural development can contribute towards the alleviation of poverty. Likewise, a higher agricultural productivity encourages growth in other sectors. 1.1 (Output 1 ): Factors for increasing productivity of agricultural work were made available to the poor. Activities: 1.1.1 Provision and maintenance of infrastructure supportive to production and marketing. 1.1.2 Setting Programmes to train farmers on modern agriculture and irrigation techniques. 1.1.3 Review the package of agricultural legislation and policies in favor of poor farmers. Implementation and monitoring partners: Council of Representatives- Council of Ministers - Ministry of Agriculture - Water Resources - counterparts in Kurdistan Region - Private sector Box (7) Decisions and legislations supportive to granting loans and to the agricultural sector 1.A law was passed granting trainees at vocational training centers attached to the Ministry of Labour and Socia l Affairs ID 5,000 as a training reward for each day spent in training . 2.The House of Representatives voted for a law for agricultural lending fund for peasants and small farmers. The fund offers soft loans to peasants for rural development. 3.Council of Ministers' resolution at Session 35 on August 14th 2007 putting into effect the soft loans scheme and allocating$ 100 million to give loans to the unemployed and provide job opportunities through the Ministries of Industry and Social Affairs. 4.Council of Ministers resolution at Session 17 on September 7th 2006 to purchase local agricultural crops at the prices of imported crops. 5.Council of Ministers resolution at Session 2 on June 15th, 2008; to approve allocation of rentals of agricultural lands to contracted peasants and farmers up to 50% for 2008 6.Council of Ministers resolution at Session 6 on September 21st, 2008 implying that the Ministry of Agriculture shall purchase dates from peasants at ID 400,000 per ton . 7. Council of Ministers resolution at Session 7 on September 28th , 2008 exempting borrowers embarking on agriculture from payment of 2% interest due on the loan. -16 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 Provision of micro-credits to the poor Since a large proportion of the poor practice unpaid work in agriculture, promotion of patterns of income­ generating activities and provision of soft loans will have a direct impact on improving the Poor's incomes. Iraq lacks the existence of micro-credit financial institutions in the formal credit market. Given the rigid governmental banking system and limited international support in this respect, it is difficult for the poor to obtain credit to set up their small-scale enterprises. Private commercial banks usually grant credit facilities to the private sector against immovable funds and are usually reluctant to grant loans for small-scale enterprises to avoid risks and increase profits. Small loans perform an important social and economic function, as credit enables an individual to own new assets. An individual's opportunities to earn income increase as ~1is opportunities to obtain loans increase. The Strategy, therefore, has adopted the setting up and implementation of a large-scale small loan scheme focusing on income-generating activities, provided that suitable conditions are available enabling the poor to benefit from them. 1. Higher income for the poor from work Box (8) Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs Soft-loans scheme for small-scale projects The Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs launched a soft-loan scheme to set up small-scale income generating projects. The amount of loan was fixed at ID 4-10 million. The number of small-scale projects set up under these loans in Baghdad Governorate was 6,357 and about 40,000 in the other Governorates. With these projects, 18,139 job opportunities were created. Probably the groups that benefited most from this scheme were graduates , at 87%, and returning displaced individuals, at 6% . However, the female's share of these projects was only 11 %, as compared with 89% for males. In 2007, the Ministry started the second stage of this scheme implementing around 3,000 projects for each governorate with a financial coverage of about $15 mi llion for each governorate, with the exception of Basrah and Ninevah , the allocations for which amounted to $25 million . A report of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs stated that the total number of employees for whom work was provided was 244,144 during the period from 2003 to March, 2009. This number comprised 228,213 males and 15,931 females . During the same month the number of trainees was 766, of whom 278 were in Baghdad and 488 in other governorates. The number of males was 349 against 417 females. 1.2 (Output 2): Lending programmes for income-generating projects for the poor are implemented. Activities: 1.2.1 Introduce regulations to ensure larger coverage of the poor by the lending programme to help them establish small income-generating projects. 1.2.2 Conduct awareness campaigns for the poor to help them benefit from the programme. 1.2.3 Organize training programmes to help the poor make good use of loans. Implementation and monitoring partners: Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs Government and private banks, civil society organisations, local Councils, counterparts in KRG NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 17 - Ensuring fair wages for the poor The minimum wage needs to be revised according to changes in the national poverty line. Setting this system in a suitable legal framework, along with acquainting the working poor with their rights for higher wage that is proportional to the poverty line, will guarantee a proper application of this system and compliance with it by the appropriate authorities. 1. Higher income for the poor from work 1.3 (Output 3): A system for revising the minimum daily wage according to changes in the national poverty line is adopted Activities: 1.3.1 Conduct inspection visits to monitor proper application of the law. 1.3.2 Flexible paragraphs are to be included in the Labour Code specifying a minimum wage that is proportional to the poverty line. 1.3.3 Acquaint the workers, who receive minimum wage, with their rights for wages consistent with the poverty line. 1.3.4 Designate a unit in the employment offices in all governorates, where workers can report to when employers do not comply with the law. Implementation and monitoring partners Council of representatives - Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs - Labour Federations and Unions - counterparts in Kurdistan Region - civil society organisations. Setting up effective employment offices Creating job opportunities in poor areas in the poor urban and rural areas is considered as a major challenge to PRS. given shrinkage of work opportunities particularly in agricultural Labour. The Strategy has adopted a programme for setting up active employment offices in the countryside to provide working opportunities that are currently confined to urban areas and take necessary measures to make these offices accessible to the poor. It is assumed that the government would protect national Labour from incoming foreign Labour competition. 1. Higher income for the poor from work 1.4 (Output 4) Active employment offices established in the rural areas and are accessible by the poor. Activities: 1.4.1 Employment offices coordinate with the private sector to provide job opportunities. 1.4.2 Employment offices coordinate with the agencies responsible for training rehabilitating and enhancing the poor working skills. 1.4.3 Support the activities of the Employment High Committee. Implementation and monitoring partners Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs - Governorates councils - labour unions - counterparts in Kurdistan Region -private sector -18 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 Support civil society initiatives Civil society organisations play an important role in supporting PRS through carrying out pro-poor activities which can provide the poor with potential sustainable income; provide suitable employment opportunities, training and micro credits. 1. Higher income for the poor from work 1.5 (Output 5) Government supported pro-poor initiatives by civil society. Activities: 1.5.1 Participation in income-generating programmes for the poor, which the donors contribute to. 1.5.2 Government provides facilities and funding to organisations which have programmes targeting the poor. Implementation and monitoring partners Ministry of State for Civil Society Affairs - Ministry of Planning- counterparts in Kurdistan Region - Civil society Organization Provision of training opportunities on new jobs and occupations The Strategy has adopted the activation of evening vocational centers and the intensification of training programmes for specific vocations. These will help overcome skills and education shortage, which the poor suffer of and increase their opportunities to get income generating work. This process should be undertaken with effective participation of civil society organisations and groups of donors. This participation should not be confined to financing only, but to ensure widest coverage of the poor through providing efficient training programmes for suitable occupations. 1. Higher income for the poor from work 1.6 Evening handcraft centres and rapid training programmes have been established or activated for the poor on income generating vocations. Activities: 1.6.1 Organise awareness campaigns for the poor to encourage them enroll in training centres and programmes. 1.6.2 Civil society organisations participate in operating training centres for the poor. Implementation and monitoring partners Council of Ministers - Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs - Civil society organisations - media­ counterparts in Kurdistan Region NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 19- 4. 2 Improved Health Status Of The Poor Since economic sanctions were imposed on Iraq in 1990, the problems of the health services sector have increased and so have the rate of diseases, especially among children under five years of age. Likewise epidemic diseases have begun to spread quickly again in the absence of suitable protection. Per capita share of the health sector's allocations have risen since 2004, but it is still less than half that for 1990. Besides, this increase should not be taken as an indicator of improvement of the quality of health services, because the greater portion of this increase came to cover the share of wages and salaries of the workers in the health sector. It did not reflect an improvement in the quality of services provided by health institutions. This explains why households continued to allocate significant portion of their expenditure (equal to 3%), for health purposes. This proportion rises in Kurdistan Region to exceed 5% of total household's expenditure. The increase in the proportion of household expenditure on health implies two fundamental facts: • Inferior quality of government health services. • Increase of drug prices during the past years, since the private sector operates in this area without regulations and without direct control by the state, albeit the sensitivity of drugs issue. 2. Improved health status of the poor Despite the wide expansion in the number of primary healthcare centers, most of these centers are still unable to provide healthcare due to shortage of equipment and qualified personnel. Setting up health policies aiming at curbing health problems, reducing their negative impacts on the poor, improving the health standard, care and services provided to them, are fundamental goals which PRS endeavors to achieve with special emphasis on preventive beside curative medical services. These policies include improved primary health care services, access to safe potable water and sanitation services in poor areas, increasing coverage of these areas by the activities of the expanded programme of immunization, reproductive health programmes and improvement of the nutritional status of the poor. Improving primary health care for the poor Since primary healthcare services are more important for the poor, and due to its wide geographical diffusion, the first output of the outcome adopts improvement of primary healthcare and easy access to it by the poor, on the assumption that society is confident of the healthcare services themselves and qualified personnel are available in these centers. 2.1 (First output) Primary health care centres are improved and accessible by the poor. Activities: 2.1.1 Training of personnel of primary healthcare centers. 2.1.2 Building well-equipped primary healthcare centers. 2.1.3 Increasing the number of mobile clinics for remote areas. Implementation and monitoring partners Ministry of Health- Ministry of Planning - counterparts in Kurdistan Region Preventive instead of curative medicine There is no doubt that improvement of the health situation begins with the people themselves and prevention is better than cure. This requires increased awareness of individuals in general, and the poor in particular, because of the low level of their educational standard and, consequently, low capacity to realize behavioral risks of communicable and non-communicable diseases through intensified health education programmes for protection from diseases and health risks arising from negative habits. -20 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 2. Improved health status of the poor 2.2 (Second output): Awareness of behavioral risks for communicable and non- communicable diseases is increased. Activities: 2.2.1 Conducting awareness campaigns through TV, broadcast, printed media and seminars. Implementation and monitoring partners Ministry of Health - Ministry of Health in Kurdistan Region - the media Upgrading public services for the poor Expanding improved and developed potable water and sanitation services constitutes an effective mechanism for upgrading the environment for the poor, particularly for poor women who are in direct contact with the problems arising from the inadequacy of these services. The Strategy adopted this output for the purpose of improving public health, provided that there is a sustained flow of resources allocated for these projects and commitment by contractors to implement them. 2. Improved health status of the poor Box (9): Initiative for an early detection of chronic diseases project The basic purpose of communicable and non­ communicable diseases control is that it contributes to the alleviation of the weight of poverty. This process involves early detection and provision of integrated treatment for affected individuals. The Ministry of Health implemented a project for early detection and integral care of high blood pressure and diabetes, which started at 200 primary healthcare centers in Iraq in coordination with specialized hospitals and medical centers. This project should be extended to cover the medical centers in the rural and poor areas. Use could be made in this respect of international organizations, especially WHO, and international civil society organizations. 2.3 (Third output) : Government programme to supply potable water and sanitation services to the poor areas is implemented or underway Activities: 2.3.1 Expanding potable water supply projects to reach poor areas. 2.3.2 Expanding sanitary excreta disposal project. Implementation and monitoring partners Ministry of Planning - Municipalities and Public Works - Baghdad municipality - Governorates councils - Counterparts in Kurdistan Region NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 21- Expanded programme of immunization (EPI) The Strategy endeavors to strengthen poor areas coverage by EPI activities, since the improvement of these activities against communicable diseases, ensuring its coverage of c~1ildren, particularly infants in the first year of life, and controlling measles, polio and neonatal tetanus are all elements of an integral 2. Improved health status of the poor health system. Besides, covering poor areas by EPI activities, especially the countryside, means diminishing the chances of the poor's children infection by these diseases, and, consequently, eradication of one of the causes of forced impoverishment. 2.4 (Fourth Output) Poor areas coverage by the activities of the Expanded Programme of Immunization is enhanced. Activities: 2.4.1 Strengthening epidemics monitoring system for communicable diseases. 2.4.2 Implementing vaccination campaigns. 2.4.3 Maintaining campaigns' requirements (vaccines, disposable materials, cold chain, and transport). Implementation and monitoring partners Ministry of Health - Ministry of Health of Kurdistan Region Food security is an essential element for keeping the poor from hunger. Despite the fact that the food ration system has ensured an adequate level of security through providing a number of calories for all individuals, the Strategy considers that it could be made an important means for the protection of the poor if Poor Targeting System is adopted and the poor continue to obtain the food items included. This can happen on the assumption that the food ration system efficiency is improved as well as its ability to target the poor. 2. Improvement of the health standard of the poor 2.5 (Fifth output): Nutritional status of the poor is improved. Activities: 2.5.1 The poor continue to receive full ration items. 2.5.2 School meals are to be re-introduced to primary schools .. Implementation and control partners Ministry of Trade - Ministry of Health - CSO- Counterparts in Kurdistan Region, Reproductive health and family planning programmes Reproductive health and family planning programmes contribute to the alleviation of poverty. They enhance women's opportunities for work, relieve poor families of an economic burden, enable each family to allocate more resources for each child, improve the family's nutrition and maternal health, increase education opportunities and ease pressure on living environment. From the Strategy's perspective, increasing spending on family planning can produce commendable effects on social spending on health, education, water, housing, etc. It is worthy of note that contraceptives are not available in the public health institutions, nor does government cover their costs. Therefore, access to contraceptives depends on the private sector. In the circumstances, half the married women of the age group 15-49 years do not use contraceptives according to the results of the multi-indicators survey for 2006. -22 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 2. Improvement of the health standard of the poor 2.6 (Sixth output) Programme to strengthen reproductive health for the poor, ready and underway. Activities: 2.6.1 Implement awareness programmes on reproductive health. 2.6.2 Training of medical and health personnel. 2.6.3 Continue to provide standardised materials and requirements (with international standards) Implementation and monitoring partners Ministry of Health - Ministry of Health in Kurdistan Region 4.3 Dissemination And Upgrading Of Education Of The Poor Data indicate a substantial improvement in the proportion of public expenditure on education to total government expenditure since 2004. However, it is still below the levels attained in the second half of the sixties and first half of the seventies of the last century. The greater part of the increase was directed towards meeting the requirements of the current budget which consisted mostly of wages and salaries of this sector's personnel. Investment was not given a place adequate enough to address the deficiency of the education system. The operational budget constituted 96%, 99%, 99%, 84% and 94% of the Ministry of Education's total budget for the years 2004-2008 respectively. Despite improvement of public expenditure on education, the pattern of household expenditure on education continued to rise so that it exceeded three times such expenditure in 1988. Illiteracy rate is still high among the poor; reaching 29% for individuals aged 10 years and above. It stands at 24% in urban and at 33% in rural areas. The disparity is more marked between females ( 18%) and males (38% ). Enrollment rates in post-primary school stages reflect wide disparities between poor and non-poor, between rural and urban and between governorates. For example, enrollment rate in the intermediate stage for the poor is half that for non-poor. I HSES revealed that the rate of non-enrollment in schools was 45% due to lack of interest by the household or individuals, 18% because there were no schools and 12% for social reasons -which reflects weakness of awareness of the importance of education and incapacity of the educational system to provide adequate schools and their requirements. 80 60 40 20 0 (Net enrollment rate %) Primary Schools Intermediate Schools Secondary Schools Institutes & Universities Figure (9) The poorer (lowest 20% in terms of expenditure) have less chances of education Box (10) Millennium Development Goals (MDG's) are consistent with those of PRS The second MDG goal is Achieve universal primary education . The aim is to empower children everywhere, both males and females on equal footing, to finish the full curriculum for the primary stage by 2015. Three indicators have been identified to monitor the progress achieved . These indicators are: Net enrollment ratio in primary education , Proportion of pupils starting grade 1 who reach grade 5 and Literacy rate of 15-24 year olds. These indicators correspond to a large extent with the ill iteracy and enrollment indicators targeted by the Strategy which are: • Reduce illiteracy rate for the poor by half • 98% of the poor in primary education for both males and females . • 50% of the poor in intermediate education, • 40% of the poor in secondary education. NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 23- Net enrollment rate% Targeted indicator (2015) 98 Base indicator (2007) 0 20 40 60 80 100 Figure (10) Achieving universal primary education for both sexes Net enrollment rate%, Targeted indicator (2015) 50 Base indicator (2007) Compulsory education up to third year intermediate stage The Strategy adopted a set of outputs to achieve universal and improved education for the poor. The first output relates to the issuance of compulsory basic education law and instructions for up to third year intermediate stage. This output is built on the assumptions that poor households in the rural areas and in poor residential quarters will cooperate effectively. Local Administrations are also expected to cooperate in following up on the application of the law. It is worth noting that Kurdistan Region is applying this law according to the Region's Constitution. New schools in poor quarters The structural imbalance of the educational budget (drop of the investment share) led to low seating capacity in the educational sector and constituted one of the weak points of the educational system. This weakness reflects more markedly in imbalance in the number of schools and their geographical distribution in comparison with the 0 20 40 60 80 100 actual needs. Figure (11) Achieving 50% in intermediate education for both sexes Net enrollment rate% Targeted indicator (2015) 40 Base indicator (2007) 23.4 0 20 40 60 80 100 Figure (12) Achieving 40% in secondary education for both sexes -24 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 3.Dissemination and upgrading of education for the poor 3.1 (First output): Compulsory basic education law and regulations are issued and activated, particularly in poor and rural areas. Activities: 3.1.1 Amending Article (34/First) of the Constitution to extend compulsory education to the intermediate stage (third year intermediate school). 3.1.2 Build a database for the age group covered by compulsory education according to geographic distribution, focusing on poor rural areas for easy follow-up with the households, which have children in this age group. 3.1.3 Initiate partnership programme between government and civil society organisations and ministries involved in the implementation of compulsory education. 3.1.4 Activate the relationship with fathers-teachers councils in a legal and institutional form designed to disseminate compulsory education culture. 3.1.5 Review the terms of reference of the Education Information Department in order to raise awareness on the importance of commitment to compulsory education. 3.1.6 Monitor and follow-up on the drop-outs in the compulsory education age group as part of the Ministry of Education annual plan (teachers field teams, considering reduced drop­ out rates as criterion for efficiency, etc.). 3.1. 7 Lobbying in support of the amendment of the constitutional paragraph related to the extension of compulsory education. Implementation and monitoring partners Council of Representativesl-Council of Ministers - Ministry of Education - Ministry of State for Civil Society Affairs - civil society organisations - Counterparts in Kurdistan Region .. 3. Dissemination and upgrading of education for the poor. 3.2 (Second output): Priority is given to the construction of primary, intermediate and secondary schools in poor areas. Activities: 3.2.1 Establishment of a database on the distribution of educationally poor areas (geographic and administrative) according to deprivation rate from intermediate and secondary schools. 3.2.2 Allocate enough funds in the education investment budget as per schools' levels (priority to government investment expenditure on education) with priority given to the construction and rehabilitation of intermediate and secondary schools in villages and poor neighborhoods according to appropriate time-bound plans. 3.2.3 Achieve compatibility between the requested school area and the number of students covered by compulsory education in the geographical area (school seating capacity). 3.2.4 Set a programme to provide support to the local governments in building and rehabilitating schools, especially intermediate and secondary schools. Implementation and monitoring partners Ministry of Education - Local Administrations - Governorates councils - Counterparts in Kurdistan Region. NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 25- Strengthening households' concern in the education oftheirchildren IHSES findings showed that over one third of dropouts from schools was due to lack of concern of the household or individuals in education. Therefore, the Strategy adopted the approach of linking eligibility to receive social protection net assistance with a commitment by poor households to register their children in schools to complete basic education instead of plunging early into the Labour market and leaving their school seats. This constitutes an initiative to ensure that poor children secure suitable educational opportunities which would help them pursue education to higher stages. 3.Dissemination and upgrading of education for the poor. 3.3 The law and instructions of the Social Protection Net have been amended to allow linkages with the registration of the children of families covered by the net in basic education. Activities: 3.3.1 Build a database at governorate, Qadha and Nahiya levels on children at basic education age from households, which benefit from the Social Protection Net. 3.3.2 Revise the Social Protection Net law and instructions to ensure registration and attendance of children from beneficiary households. 3.3.3 Prepare a mechanism for exchanging information between the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. Implementation and monitoring partners Council of Ministers - Ministry of Education - Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs - Counterparts in Kurdistan Region. Boosting the efficiency of schools attended by the poor Improving educational efficiency in general, and in schools attended by the poor, in particular, is a decisive factor for attracting more of them to enroll in education and ensuring elimination of dropout cases from school. 3.Dissemination and upgrading of education for the poor. 3.4 (Fourth output): Educational efficiency is improved in poor urban and rural areas. Activities: 3.4.1 Priority in distributing efficiency related education services (e.g. Laboratories, teaching aids, etc.) is given to poor quarters, areas and neighborhoods. 3.4.2 Giving priority to training of teachers and instructors in poor urban and rural areas. Implementation and monitoring partners Ministry of Education - Ministry of Education in Kurdistan Region Reducing illiteracy among the poor Illiteracy is a major challenge impeding the optimal use of available opportunities for a decent living by the poor. Therefore, addressing the problem of illiteracy must be viewed from a wider angle and go beyond the mere acquirement of reading and writing skills. It should aim also at curbing the flow of new illiterates by means of imposing compulsory basic education and working to eradicate adults' illiteracy. This requires the identification of the real magnitude of the problem and the challenges that impede its eradication, along with specifying clearly the objectives of illiteracy eradication programmes. It also requires the availability of a responsible political will, quite aware of the seriousness of the problem within a framework of coordination and complementarity between the relevant authorities. -26 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 3. Dissemination and upgrading of education for the poor. 3.5 (Fifth output) Measures and activities have been undertaken to reduce the number of illiterates. Activities: 3.5.1 Issuance of Illiteracy Eradication Law. 3.5.2 Establish illiteracy eradication centers. 3.5.3 Organize awareness campaigns to encourage enrollment in illiteracy eradication centers. Implementation and monitoring partners Council of representatives - Ministry of Education - civil society organisations - media­ Counterparts in Kurdistan Region. With the concentration of poverty in the rural areas, along with lack of working opportunities, the need arises to link vocational education with the Labour market in the agricultural and other rural sectors to ensure sustainable working opportunities. Therefore, the Strategy's is concerned with linking vocational education curricula with the Labour market, particularly in the agricultural and rural sector. 3. Dissemination and upgrading of education for the poor. 3.6 (Sixth output): Programmes which link vocational education with labour market needs, especially in the agricultural and rural sectors, are prepared and implemented. Activities: 3.6.1 Provide and promote the wide use of international reports and publications related to linking vocational education with Labour market needs. 3.6.2 Set programmes to upgrade the efficiency and quality of vocational education and serious follow up of implementation. Implementation and monitoring partners Ministry of Education - International Labour Organisation 4. 4 A Better Living Environment For The Poor With the increase in population growth rates, per capita share of economic resources declines in the absence of an economic policy that seeks to increase these resources or boost their productivity, in order to exceed, or even to run parallel to population growth rates. Therefore, an increase in poverty rates will necessarily lead to the deterioration, depletion and heavy use of environment. The poor suffer of problems related to the environment in which they live, including dilapidation of the housing units, overcrowding, pollution and reflects the deprivation from which the poor suffer and contributes to its deepening. Power sector problems are among the factors that affect other economic sectors, particularly those depend on it as a basic source of energy. Many small-scale industries halted their activities with the result that job opportunities and income earning for the poor in urban areas receded. Small farmers also faced serious problems with the rise of the costs of power supply to their projects and farms, which contributed to the rise of the rural poor rate. inconvenient infrastructure. Bad accommodation Interruptions of the electrical current are still going on NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 27- and for long periods reaching, in some places, to 16 hours during the day. The situation of the Electricity sector and its problems are reflected in the number of hours electricity is supplied to households. With the decline of power supply, households look for alternative sources such as connecting to a generator shared with other households in the same residential quarter, or purchase a private generator for the household. Nevertheless, households do not secure more than 18 hours/day on average by using these alternatives together. This imposes an extra burden on households as a result of the high costs of alternatives other than the public network Despite the fact that most homes are connected to the public water network, the percentage of poor households not connected to the network are over two times that of the non-poor (33% as compared with 14%). Likewise, some cities suffer from water supply interruptions at least once a week. This is due to several causes, including the delay in the development and maintenance of water treatment projects, which is related, to a large extent, to the inadequacy of financial allocations, in addition to the fact that water bill is too low as compared to its real cost.. Sanitation services are available in some districts of Baghdad and some other towns only. In other governorates, these services reach few districts only. In Basrah, for example, sanitation network serves only 11 % of the city's area. Millions of tons of untreated sewerage water are discharged into rivers causing dangerous levels of microbes in the creek waters that serve domestic purposes. 35% of the poor and 20% of the non-poor homes are not connected to public network or septic tanks, a situation that causes a lot of suffering. As for housing, current estimates indicate that there is a housing balance of not more 3.3 million housing units at present. Some of these units are below the lowest standards. The Ministry of Reconstruction and Housing estimates indicate that the total need for housing in the country will be about 3.52 million housing units by 2015. Housing projects for the poor The Strategy gives priority to providing basic infrastructures such as roads, potable water, sanitation networks and electricity for poor areas through allocation of adequate resources for low­ income housing schemes. It also offers incentives to encourage the private sector build such houses (allocation of plots of land, provision of infrastructures, new forms of partnership, etc.) provided that the poor will benefit from these 4. A better living environment for the poor. 4.1 (First output): State projects to build appropriate housing units for the poor on easy terms are expanded. Activities: 4.1.1 Implementation of projects for building low cost housing complexes for the poor. 4.1.2 Development and implementation of rules and procedures for targeting beneficiaries. 4.1.3 Development and implementation of rules and procedures for recovering the costs of housing units from beneficiaries on concessional terms. 4.1.4 Development and implementation of programmes and mechanisms to involve the poor in the identification of the type of housing best suited to their needs. 4.1.5 Encourage Awqaf funds administrations and social security and minors funds to participate in funding low-cost housing projects. Implementation and monitoring partners Council of Ministers - Ministry of Housing and Construction - Ministry of Planning - Private sector -Counterparts in Kurdistan Region -28 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 Partnership with the private sector The government and local governments in particular can contribute to providing the necessary infrastructure services for setting up low-cost housing projects. On the other hand, partnership with the private sector may contribute to reactivation of the National Housing Fund" to create an easy and quick source for short- and medium-term loans, which Fund has not so far succeeded in playing a suitable role to resolve the housing issue through granting loans to individuals. Until May 1, 2009, only 6,900 housing units had been built and added to the housing balance. The housing sector can be an area for partnership with the private sector if the second output is adopted to encourage the private sector to participate in low-cost housing, provided that there is a private sector willing and able to implement such projects. 4. A better living environment for the poor. 4.2 (Second output): A programme to encourage participation of the private sector in low-cost housing is designed. Activities: 4.2.1 Taking measures to encourage participation of the private sector in building housing units in poor neighborhoods. 4.2.2 Taking measures to provide infrastructure for these projects. Implementation and monitoring partners Council of Ministers - Ministry of Planning - Housing and Reconstruction - Baghdad municipality -Ministry of Municipalities - Ministry of Electricity - National Commission for Investment - Counterparts in Kurdistan Region - Private sector Improving public services Improving the environment surrounding the dwellings by paving the roads, provision of public transport services, organisation of market places and provision of garbage disposal services cannot be effective without the people realizing the importance of looking after their environment. Therefore, launching an awareness campaign targeting the poor is an imperative condition for the improvement of the environment. It will contribute to create awareness on this human necessity, and consequently, achieve environmental complementarity and reduce environmental degradation. 4. A better living environment for the poor. 4.3 (Third output): Dwellings are surrounded by suitable environment. Activities: 4.3.1 Implementation of projects for paving and lighting roads in poor areas. 4.3.2 Provision of public transport services .. 4.3.3 Organisation of the market places in poor areas. 4.3.4 Provision of garbage disposal services 4.3.5 Establish sports and scientific clubs and public parks. 4.3.6 Awareness programmes for the poor on preservation of the environment surrounding their dwellings. 4.3.7 Provision of maintenance services for installations surrounding the dwellings Implementation and control partners Ministry of Housing and Reconstruction - Electricity - Baghdad Municipality - Ministry of Transport - Ministry of Planning - Ministry of Youth and Sports - Governorates' Councils - Ministry of Municipalities - Counterparts in Kurdistan Region - Private sector - Civil society organisations (5) Created under Order No.11 of 2004 with a capital of ID 300 billion ($ 200 million) subjectto increase. NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 29- 4.5 Effective Social Protection For The Poor Most official protection measures were geared to the urban poor. The rural poor had little chances in this respect. Therefore, tribal and religious solidarity played its role as a safety net in the rural areas. Moreover, these measures sometimes took the form of emergency reactions to wars or disasters and did not have a clear and direct link with poverty alleviation. Social Protection Net (SPN) Late in 2005, the government set up the SPN system, which coincided with lifting subsidy on fuel. This system was designed to help the poor in overcoming the negative impacts of economic reforms and lifting subsidy on some items, notably fuel. In 2006 the general budget set up for the first time a comprehensive programme for social protection of the poor in the form of cash payments. This programme supposed to cover one million households. ID 500 billion was allocated for its implementation. In 2007, the amount was increased to ID 920 billion, including ID 120 billion for Kurdistan Region. This system was later strengthened by creating a special department for women. In July Box (11) Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs; Initiative for the rectification of the social protection net's targeting system The Net absorbed a large number of unemployed youth . The number covered by the Net reached 250,000 unemployed individuals receiving assistance. The Ministry found that, with the improvement of the economic situation , to continue granting Net assistance would encourage laziness. Some citizens may even find a job opportunity, yet continue to receive assistance without informing the authorities in the Net. Therefore, the Ministry took several measures as follows: 1. An unemployed individual may find a job opportunity in a government department but continues to receive the assistance as a "salary" for his job at that department. 2. Assistance continues to be paid to unemployed individuals on the Net's roster for a period of six months and are then replaced by other unemployed individuals as an encouragement to the former batch to look for an alternative income to that of the Net. 3. Register the names of unemployed individuals in the data base of the Labour and Vocational Training Department, so that they either be provided with jobs or enrolled in training courses. 2007, as a result of the escalation of violence incidents, forcibly displaced families were covered by SPN assistance as an exception to the rules in force. Necessity to ensure sound targeting The SPN instructions specified the targeted categories as follows: • The unemployed • Certain types of the disabled (blind, suffering from quadriplegia irrespective of age and total disability at age 15 and above) • Minor orphans • Divorced women, widow with minor children and married student, who is continuing his study until graduation from the university. • Family of individuals in prison, in custody or lost. • Totally incapacitated individuals due to illness or old age (both sexes) • Head of household incapacitated by 50% (70% in Kurdistan Region) due to terrorist acts. The basis for covering households or individuals by the net's assistance is having no or low income. However, a review of the categories of those targeted may not conform to this criterion because: • Rectification of the targeting system requires detaching those covered by permanent social care assistance (handicapped, widows and disabled) and those who are temporarily entitled to this assistance until the circumstance that caused his/her failure to obtain income changes. The effectiveness of the SPN depends on the accuracy and fairness of targeting, so that it does not cover the non­ poor nor does it exclude eligible poor. • The social protection policy must observe two important aspects: the magnitude of poverty and the poverty gap. The Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs specified a flat coverage rate of the poor of 20% in each governorate. In other words it relied on one criterion irrespective of the magnitude and gap of poverty in each governorate, which requires taking into account the results of IHSES and the Poverty Analysis Report in targeting. - 30 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 The Strategy aims at a wider coverage of the poor by the SPN, which requires reforming the targeting system through the lessons learnt. From its application over the past four years. The Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs identified some of the 5. Effective social protection for the poor challenges it had faced during application. The Strategy calls for addressing these challenges in order to achieve a higher degree of benefit for the poor. 5.1 (First output): Procedures have been taken to guarantee proper application of the social safety net. Assumptions: • Society is aware of the objective of the SPN • Enactment of SPN Law Activities: 5.1.1 Take measures to adopt decentralization in administering the social protection net(5l 5.1.2 Develop a database for the households covered by the social safety net and update it on continuous basis. 5.1.3 Design a capacity building programme to rehabilitate and train personnel on proper application of the Social Protection Net. 5.1.4 Prepare firm monitoring reports on work mechanism and law implementation by Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. 5.1.5 Expedite the Smart Card System procedures. 5.1.6 Design a media programme addressing the public to make them aware of their rights, eligibility conditions and penalties for breach of the social protection net regulations 5.1. 7 Initiate partnership with civil society organisations in targeting the poor and evaluating the Social Protection Net. 5.1.8 Set a mechanism to link the amount of assistance with the inflation rate, with a possibility to issue inflation rates for essential commodities. 5.1.9 Set a mechanism to cover the displaced people by the social protection net 5.1.10 Set a mechanism to cover the beggars by the social protection net Implementation and monitoring partners Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs - Governorates Councils -Ministry of State for Civil Society Organisations Affairs - Ministry of Migration and the Displaced. international organisations - Counterparts in Kurdistan Region Using the National Poverty Line Instead of using international standards adopted by the Net, i.e. around one dollar a day, which are inconsistent with the real situation of the poor in Iraq, especially after the World Bank adoption of$ 2.5 for countries of medium levels of development, IHSES 5. Effective social protection for the poor has fixed the poverty line at ID 78,000 per capita per month. Therefore, the Strategy calls for using the Poverty Line in specifying the targeted categories by the Net's assistance. 5.2 (Second output): The adopted national poverty line is used in specifying the categories targeted by the Social Protection Net. Activities: 5.2.1 Updating the national poverty line on annual basis using data from household surveys and other statistical sources to determine which households are targeted by assistance. Implementation and monitoring partners Ministry of Planning - Ministry of Planning of Kurdistan Region (6) The Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs has actually launched this activity. NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 31- Box (12) Recommendations of the food ration reform committee To complete the items of the Poverty Reduction Strategy in Iraq within the framework of building an effective social protection system for the poor, a high committee for food ration reforming was formed . This committee, which was chaired by the Secretary­ General of the Council of Ministers, comprised a number of parliamentarians , under-secretaries , advisors and directors-general from the Council of Ministers and from appropriate ministries and representatives of Kurdistan Region . The Committee's task was to address three major aspects: targeted groups covered by the food ration, components of the food ration card and operation of the ration system. The Committee made the following recommendations: 1.Setting a system whereby reduction of the number of those covered by the ration card begins gradually in 2010 and ends by the end of 2014. Those who actually need support will shift to the social protection system. 2.Excluding rural areas from targeting procedures, because of high poverty rates in these areas. 3. Reducing of the number of ration items during a period of five years 2010-2014 to be restricted to five items only: flour, rice, sugar, vegetable oils and formula milk. 4.Continue to follow the recent management system in running the ration system, provided that local administrations play monitoring and evaluation roles and take decisions regarding activating the principle of reducing the number of individuals covered by the ration system and made it restricted it to those actually entitled to the ration. The food ration system In view of the cost of the food ration as it currently stands, and since some of the reasons that necessitated its adoption have ceased to exist, it is necessary to reduce the groups of its beneficiaries and restrict it to the poor and households prone to fall into poverty if they were to be deprived of the ration card. The food ration system was created as an economic rationing tool in times of crisis when the UN Security Council issued resolutions imposing economic sanctions. In September 1990, the Iraqi Ministry of Trade applied this system and started to distribute small food rations to citizens. With this system, the Ministry hoped that it could avert the danger of starvation that had begun to loom large in the horizon. This system is considered as the largest food distribution system in the world. The value of the food ration items, computed at market prices, constitute 16% of total expenditure of poorer households, while it drops to 3.2% only for richer households. Persistent calls have been made to reform or discontinue the food ration on the grounds that the system was marred by drawbacks; it equated all the Iraqis, the rich and the poor, in the distribution of ration, let alone the waste in the ration items and administrative corruption that accompanied the system. Besides, it created distortions in the structure of the food market. On the supply side, the system produced a surplus in the supply of the commodities included in the ration card. This led to a drop in their prices to a level below their cost and to a decline in their production at domestic level. On the demand side, the ration system led to a drop in local demand for locally produced food commodities. The food ration system constitutes a heavy burden on the state's public budget. Despite the annual decrease in its allocations since 2004, it still accounts for 7% of gross public expenditure; higher than the ratio of expenditure on health to gross public expenditure and comes close to the ratio of expenditure on education (with the exception of 2009). Therefore the government decided to carry out radical amendments to this system. The Ministry of Trade launched a plan to set a targeting system that excludes government civil servants, whose - 32 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 salaries exceed ID 1.5 million, from the ration. There is no doubt that total lifting of the food ration system for all households would greatly jeopardize the poor. Vulnerable groups close to the poverty line would also be affected by this act and might fall into the jaws of poverty. Using IHSES findings, calculations were made to measure the impact of this act on the poor. It was found that lifting the ration items from all households will lead to an increase in the rate of poverty at the national level from 23% to 34% (on the assumption that prices will not change and households will not modify their expenditure pattern or draw on their savings and that the government will not spend what it saves out of lifting 5. Effective social protection for the poor the card including increasing the social safety net assistance). Reforming the food ration system should be carried out gradually and the allocations to be spent on food ration should be geared to meeting the requirements of social protection. Besides, linking both systems in practice may contribute to boosting the efficiency of public expenditure, increase public expenditure per capita and increase the resources allocated to the social protection system, which will reflect positively on the income received by the poor from this system. 5.3 (Third output): Procedures to phase out of the food ration system have been set up and implemented, in order to target the poor and the most needy categories. Activities: 5.3.1 Transfer the savings from ration card targeting to the budget of the Social Protection Net. 5.3.2 Set a system for monitoring, evaluating and reforming the ration system. Implementation and monitoring partners Ministry of Finance - Ministry of Labour - Ministry of Trade - Auditing authorities - Counterparts in Kurdistan Region. 4.6 Less Inequality Between Poor Women And Men The Strategy aims at reducing inequality between men and women whether to the advantage of women or men. Empowerment of women economically through equality in education, job opportunities and earning of a fair income is one of the major considerations for the alleviation of women's poverty. The social factors causing poverty among women are not less important than the income factor. Social traditions impose on women, especially in the rural areas, a poverty-generating and regenerating pattern of life. IHSES results revealed a gap between the two genders among the poor in enrollment in various educational stages, in literacy and participation in economic activity. Female enrolment rates in primary schools are considered low as compared with males. The gender gap for the poor has largely widened in rural areas. About 40% of females in these areas are not enrolled in primary schools, compared with about 20% in urban areas. There are cases where the disparity is not in favor of men. For instance, net enrollment rate in secondary education among the poor is in favor of women in view of the fact that males are obliged to abandon study and get a job. Illiteracy rate among poor individuals at the age of 10 years and above stands at 38% for females, compared to 18% for males. The gap is wider in rural than in urban areas, being 46% for females and 19% for males. Women participation rate in economic activities is 11 % as compared to 78% for men. It is worth noting that the reason for this disparity between men and women in general is not due to lack of appropriate legislations, but to a number of social and cultural factors (Box 13). NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 33- Box (13) Women in Iraqi legislations Women in the Iraqi Constitution The Constitution acknowledges the principle of equality between men and women and women's participation in Council of representatives and governorates councils, provided that their rate in Council of representatives does not fall below 25% as follows: Iraqi citizens, men and women, shall have the right to participate in public affairs and to enjoy political rights including the right to vote , elect and run foroffice . • The state shall guarantee for the individual and family - especially children and women - social and health security, the requirements for living a free and decent life, and shall secure for them suitable income and appropriate housing. • Forced Labour, slavery, slave trade, trafficking in women or children and sex are forbidden. • The Elections Law aims at achieving a rate of representation of women not less than quarter of the members of the house of representatives where the electing women shall not be less than eighteen years of age. The Law and women's right to work Work is a right for all Iraqis to guarantee for them a decent life. The law for civil servants in the state approved equality between women and men in rights and duties, wages and salaries. The law also approved some rules concerning women only in realization of the Constitutional commitment to guarantee for women to reconcile between the woman's family duties and her work in society, including: • A pregnant employee is entitled to pregnancy and confinement leave before delivery and afterwards 72 days with full salary • A working mother may enjoy a maternity leave of 6 months with full salary and the leave is considered service for purposes of the civil service law. Women in the Personal Status Law"' • The Personal Status Law included prov1s1ons that achieve psychological and family stability for women and preserve their dignity, as in the following instances: A wife may demand separation if she sustains physical or moral damage • A mother is more entitled to have custody of and raise the child. • If a husband divorces his wife she is entitled to alimony • A divorced wife may live in the house for three years free of charge. Girls to Boys Ratio at Education Stages Higher Education .,. 68.4 81.2 lntemediate Education ----------73 7 83 Primary Education -----------86.7 94.2 ■ Total Figure (13) Poor girls have a less chance for primary, intermediate and higher education than boys ~iris to Boys Ratio% Girls to boys in secondary education ---------- 68.5 Girls to boys in intermediate education ---------- 72.4 Girls to boys in primary education ■Base indicator ■ Targeted indicator (2007) (2015) Figure (14) Bridging the educational gap between both genders of the poor Targeted indicator (2015) Base indicator (2007) Girls to Boys Ratio% 1 0 20 40 60 Figure (15) Bridging literacy gap between genders among the poor 7 19.2 Total 12.8 80 both 85 86 24.9 Rural 16.6 Urban 18.8 0 5 10 15 20 25 • Base indicator ■Targeted indicator (2007) (2015) Figure(16) Rise of proportion of economically active poor women(%} 100 100 92 100 30 (7) The Council ofrepresentatives of Kurdistan Region made pro-women amendments to the Personal Status Law - 34 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 Increasing enrollment rates for poor girls Removing the obstacles that prevent empowerment of the poor woman and limit her educational, training and vocational choices requires, among others, the formulation of educational policies providing for plurality, diversity and spreading of educational opportunities for both sexes equally. Therefore, The Strategy adopted the method of addressing the factors causing the decline of enrollment rates for girls in various educational stages .. 6. Less inequality between poor women and men 6.1 (First output): Programmes for addressing the causes of low enrollment rates for girls (in elementary, intermediate and secondary school) are expanded. Activities: 6.1.1 Hold at least one awareness seminar in poor areas before the beginning of the academic year to spread the culture of enrollment in education and urge for compulsory education and universal education for girls. 6.1.2 Give priority to the establishment of girls' primary and secondary schools in poor areas 6.1.3 Activate the monitoring and evaluation system of enrollment rates in primary and secondary schools and identify the progress achieved. 6.1.4 Provision of logistical facilities (e.g. transport and others) to help girls reach their schools. Implementation and monitoring partners Ministry of Education - Local administrations - Ministry of Transport - Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs - Civil society organisations - Counterparts in Kurdistan Region- media Increasing work opportunities for poor girls Increasing and diversification of educational opportunities and adoption of practical educational patterns to responsive to Labour markets, contribute to increasing enrolment rates for poor girls. This will further be enhanced if it were combined with training programmes that address the deficiency in women's skills, in order to qualify them for various kinds of work, especially those related to agricultural and rural sectors. 6. Less inequality between poor women and men 6.2 (Second output): Specialised training programmes for poor women are implemented aiming at increasing job opportunities available to them. Activities: 6.2.1 Implementation of awareness programmes (at least one) before the start of academic year in the poor areas in order to disseminate the culture of school enrolment and to urge for 6.2.2 Form cooperation framework with the private sector to urge it support vocational rehabilitation programmes in rural areas. 6.2.3 Adoption of a continuous follow up system to assess the women training and rehabilitation programmes Implementation and monitoring partners Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs - private sector - Civil society organisations - Counterparts in Kurdistan Region NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 35- Strengthening social security for poor women Revising the laws in general, and those related to labour and social security in particular, is an imperative necessity to ascertain that they are free from all forms of discrimination against women. These will also improve the legal status, which secures women rights in labour and propose new legal amendments in the areas where some forms of discrimination stand out. Eventually, laws will be a stimulus to enrollment in education and participation in economic activities. 6. Less inequality between poor women and men 6.3 (Third output): Legislations and programmes have been issued to ensure social security for poor women. Activities: 6.3.1 Establish a social security fund for workers in the informal sector. 6.3.2 Set up an effective monitoring system for the implementation of the Social Security law, in order to ensure working woman's rights(sJ 6.3.3 Organize awareness programmes targeting women, especially in rural areas, to abide by the social security system. 6.3.4 Prepare pro-women programmes to guarantee and acquaint women with their rights. Implementation and monitoring partners Council of Ministers - Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs - Counterparts in Kurdistan Region (8) The Pension and Social Security Law in force does not cover workers in the informal sector. The new draft law includes a chapter on optional social security, which covers workers in the informal sector and the self-employed. -36 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 CHAPTER FIVE : IMPLEMENTATION, MONITORING AND EVALUATION Ensuring satisfactory implementation of the Strategy is a fundamental condition for its success in achieving its goals. This requires periodic evaluations aiming at testing its effectiveness and rectify its course. Furthermore, periodic revisions of the Strategy make it possible to evaluate the extent of implementation and the improvement achieved in the economic, social and political conditions of the poor. The objective of monitoring and evaluation of the Strategy is to achieve regular evaluation of the strategy implementation and its impacts on the conditions of the poor in order to determine how realistic the Strategy's goals are, the level of its effectiveness and the efficiency of various activities. The evaluation process also provides data for decision makers and other agencies concerned with the implementation of the Strategy and ensures transparency and accountability during the process of implementation. For each of the Strategy's six outcomes, there is a set of outputs related to it. Each output is linked with a specific sector, where the implementation of this set of outputs combined together lead to the achievement of its corresponding outcome. Also, a set of activities is specified to be implemented to achieve each output. In conformity with the Logical Framework Approach, the Strategy embodied impact indicators for each outcome and for some outputs, and performance indicators for each output and activity. These indicators are consistent with the processes of monitoring and evaluation and would facilitate the management of its implementation by the appropriate authorities (Annexes 1-6). Implementation of the activities of some outputs requires inputs beyond the capacity, authority and budgets of the implementing agencies. In this case the "projects" style need be to adopted, which is an effective method that has several advantages including: • Its high flexibility as regards implementation, funding and monitoring • Its ability to attract donors and get international support. • It is likely to be covered by physical and human capacity building activities. Implementing the Strategy requires the existence of an effective monitoring system to ensure its progress with a high degree of efficiency and enable decision makers to identify the problems that should be addressed. Therefore, the control and monitoring system is considered as an effective early warning tool for the problems and challenges that might obstruct the implementing the Strategy and, then, necessary measures may be taken to address them. 5.1 Building an institutional mechanism The Strategy's goals cannot be achieved in the absence of an effective institutional mechanism. Implementation of the PRS requires the combined efforts of governmental and non-governmental institutions in addition to an active role by the private sector and support by international organisations. Appropriate government institutions, both central and local, need to set up plans for achieving the Strategy's goals. These plans and related projects should be included in their annual plans. The resources and capacities necessary for its implementation need to be mobilized. Likewise, within the scope of their work, civil society organisations need to set up plans to raise the awareness of the society on the importance of the Strategy and the goals it endeavors to achieve. They should also implement whichever activities they can within the Strategy. Setting up an institutional mechanism involves the following considerations: • The key element in the implementation process is to involve all those participated in its preparation and in its monitoring and evaluation. • A sound implementation of the Strategy requires that the implementing agency posses a sound management system. • Centralization hampers implementation, monitoring and evaluation. For the Strategy to succeed in attaining its goals, the process should be integrated in the regional and local institutions. • There is an urgent need to adopt institutional capacity building programmes related to the Strategy within the implementing institutions. NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 37- 5.2 Basic tasks of the Strategy's implementation mechanism The mechanism adopted by PRS involves the following tasks: • Provide technical support to the institutions involved in its implementation in the areas of monitoring and evaluation. • Follow-up and analyze the regular reports submitted by the implementing agencies to the Strategy supervisory authorities. • Evaluate the Strategy and measure the progress towards the achievement of its goal. • Monitor the problems and challenges that hamper its implementation and find solutions for them. • Prepare and publish comprehensive annual reports to monitor the progress made towards the achievement of the goal. The institutional mechanism set up by the Strategy for its implementation comprises the following structure: High Steering Committee for Poverty Reduction: This committee comprises their Excellencies the Ministers of Finance, Planning, Health, Education, Trade, Labour and Social Affairs, Reconstruction and Housing, Agriculture and Women's Affairs. The chairman of the Committee would be one of the Prime Minister's deputies. An Executive Director shall also be designated, who would be the Chairman of the High Committee for Poverty Reduction. The Committee shall undertake the following responsibilities: • Once the Strategy is approved, the committee starts supervising of the following tasks: + The approval of the Strategy's annual programme. + Issuance of decisions, orders and instructions related to outputs and activities. + Setting the terms of reference of the implementation partners. + Linking the Strategy with the annual programmes of the Five-year Development Plan, the Annual General Budget and the Annual Investment Programme. • General supervision of monitoring and evaluation processes. • Adoption of programmes included in the Strategy by the appropriate ministries. • Acting as general supervisor of the implementation and reviewing the budgets and annual plans to ascertain their conformity with the Strategy's goal. • Direct the activities related to the revision of the Strategy and formulate a new one. • Supervise and approve the process of selecting projects required for the purposes of the Strategy. High Committee for Poverty Reduction Having been supplemented by two civil society representatives and designating an executive director and a permanent secretariat, the High Committee for Poverty Reduction shall undertake the following tasks: • Carrying out the directives of the High Steering Committee for Poverty Reduction. • Preparation of monitoring reports on the implementation of the strategy's activities by the ministries at central, regional and local levels. • Implementation and guidance of the communication strategy, which supports the implementation of the Poverty Reduction Strategy. • Follow-up on the implementation of the Strategy's activities within the framework of the Five-year Plan and coordination with the authorities responsible for following up and implementing the Plan. • Coordinate with the ministries and local governments to identify the outputs and activities which they will be responsible for their implementation and submit related monitoring and evaluation reports. • Endeavor to achieve sustainability of the Strategy goal. • Identify the projects which need to be treated as independent projects, supervise the preparation of projects documents, and submit them to the Steering Committee for approval and supervise their implementation. -38 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 5.2 On the way towards the realization of the goal Monitoring is a planned and systematic process to follow-up on and compare the achieved with the expected values of the Strategy's indicators. Evaluation, on the other hand, is an organized and conscious process to see what progress has been achieved in the implementation of each of the strategy's goal, outcomes, outputs and activities and identify the lessons learnt for future planning in the subsequent stages of the PRS. These two processes overlap with the implementation process. The High Committee undertakes the task of monitoring the implementation of the Strategy and evaluation of the results achieved, as well as the evaluation of the effectiveness of the implementation of the activities in meeting the correspondent outputs and poverty reduction goals. The High Committee also submit recommendations to the Steering Committee to take the necessary related decisions. Fig. 17 presents the implementation and monitoring framework adopted by the Strategy. HIGH STEERING COMMITTEE FOR REDUCTION OF POVERTY Instructions- Orders- Priorities Federal Govermment (ministries - entities) (funding & implantation) Periodic Reports Advice Reviews HIGH COMMITTEE FOR POVERTY REDUCTION STRATEGY Regional & Local Government Govermates Councils (implantation & Monitoring) Private Sector (support & Participation In Implementation) Implementation Reports Civil Society Organizations (Support & Participation ~ ~ ti) C: 0 "iii ·s: Cl) 0::: ~ 0 c.. Cl) 0::: C: 0 .. s C: Cl) E Cl) Q. E lmplemenlaUon) ~ - l o o N o R s .l ~--~---- . ~ (funding) ► Technical FIVE - YEAR PLAN 2010-2014 ... I [-~-~~•'.' .. , , : '----------~- ---------------• WORLD BANK Technical Support Figure (17) The Strategy's implementation and monitoring framework NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 39- To ensure an efficient implementation of plans and procedures, the High Committee for Poverty Reduction set a detailed framework for monitoring and evaluation specifying the obligations of the authorities concerned with the implementation and identifying the inflow channels of performance indicators data and information of as related to activities and outputs implementation. Implementation of the Strategy demands mobilization and pooling of all efforts towards the achievement of the goals. Since the Strategy is based on real multi partnership, responsibilities and institutions responsible for the implementation have been determined. Fig.17 shows the Strategy's general implementation framework and distribution of responsibilities among ministries and their institutions within the framework of their relationship with the Five-year Plan. The Annexes 1-6 present the Strategy's outcomes, the outputs of each outcome, the activities of each output, the indicators of each activity, output and outcome and the authorities responsible for the implementation. In addition to the Strategy document, the following tasks should be undertaken: 1. Completing the detailed components of the Strategy, including details of monitoring and evaluation indicators and their implementation methods. 2. Strengthening coordination with the Five-year Plan and with other plans and strategies whose implementation is expected to be coincided with the Poverty Reduction Strategy. 3. The Strategy represents a tremendous national effort for which huge capabilities should be mobilized and not confined to the role of the National Five-year Plan or other plans and annual budgets. Therefore, some of the Strategy's activities, are required to be implemented within projects pertaining to the Strategy. Donors and regional and international organisations are to participate in supporting and funding these projects . Among the projects that can be implemented within the framework of this support are the following: • A project for the development of targeting and the integration of the food ration and social protection systems. • A project for the development of rural complexes that encompass activities serving the outcomes of income, health, education and infrastructures in rural areas. • Project for the management of Labour market for the poor. 4. Monitoring and evaluating the Strategy and keeping abreast of the latest economic and social developments, require conducting household and other statistical surveys, in addition to improving administrative databases related to the Strategy in the ministries and in other concerned authorities. 5. To sustain poverty reduction efforts, the subsequent strategy should be prepared and ready for implementation by the date of the present Strategy termination. This requires that the preparations for the next strategy start in the beginning of 2013. -40 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 Annex No. (1 ): Monitoring and implementation of the first outcome: Higher income for the poor from work Impact indicators: Poverty rate Means of Verification: Survey results 1.1 (First output): Factors for increasing productivity of agricultural work were made available to the poor. Assumptions: The poor employ the factors that were made available effectively. Performance indicators: Volume of factors (seeds, fertilizers, machinery, sprinkling irrigation systems ... ) distributed to the poor farmers .. Impact indicators: Average per capita share of product means of verification: Administrative records of the Ministry of agriculture, National Accounts data and Survey of beneficiaries. I Implementing authorities I Type I Activities M" . t . Main-I Relevant 0 ~ Indicators mis nes institutions institutions fund'"g, 1.1.1 Means of verification ------ Nmuri> Method of publication Provision and maintenance of infrastructures supportive to production and marketing Ministry of Agriculture Planning & Foll­ ow-up Dept. (Ministry of Agriculture) • Budget Dept. lnvestm- 1.Lengths of paved rural roads (1) Statistic General (Ministry of Finance) ent 2.Level of farmers' suffering al surveys • Electricity Distribution Depts.( Ministry of Electricity) Recurrent regarding supply of irrigation (2) Ad min iterative water data 1.1.2 Programmes to - Ministry of Agricultural train farmers on Agriculture Guidance Dept. modern agriculture Ministry of (Ministry of and IrngatIon Water resou- Agriculture) techniques 1.1.3 rces Planning & Foll­ ow-up Dept. (Water Resourc es Ministry) • Roads & Bridges Dept. (Ministry of Reconstruct­ ion & Housing) • Ministry of Water Resources -Agricultural Departments in the govern orates -Irrigation departments in the govern orates - Specialized Internati­ onal Organisations 3.Hours of electricity supply in rural areas. Recurr- 1.Number of trainees com- ent pleting farmers' training Grants programmes and assista- 2.Number of Nahiyas nee covered by training programmes Review the package of agricultural legislation and policies in favor of poor farmers Council of 1.Premier's Office/ State Advisory Council Federal Ministries ~~~,i~~s com Ministry of Agriculture/ budgets 3.Number of legislations and decisions issued . 2.General Secretar Legal Dept. Council of . iat of Council of Recurrent Representati- Ministers/ Legal ves Dept. 3. Council of Representatives / Agriculture and Water committee NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 Records of the General training authority 1.Administrative General data 2.0fficial Gaze­ tte (AI-Waqa'ei Al-lraqiya) 3.Minutes of Council of repres­ entatives sessions 4.Council of Mini­ sters ' decisions 43- 1.2 (Second output): Lending programmes for income-generating projects for the poor are implemented. Assumptions: The poor benefit from lending programmes to boost their incomes performance indicators: Number of beneficiaries from lending programmes. Impact indicators: Number of activities benefiting from the programmes Means of Verification: Records of the programme implementing authority. I Implementing authorities Tyl)e I ~ ication Activities M' . t - Main Relevant . 0 ~ Indicators ·17,/a~r lnlS nes 1nst1tutions institutions ,fund'"g, publicabon 1.2.1 Introduce regulations Ministry of to ensure larger Labour and coverage of the poor Social Affairs by the lending programme to help them establish small income-generating projects. 1.2.2 Conduct awareness Ministry of campaigns for the Labour and poor to help them Social Affairs benefit from the programme 1.2.3 Organize training Ministry of programmes to help Labour and the poor make good Social Affairs use of the loans Labour Dept. General Administration Rafidain Bank Loan Support Section Allocati­ ons by Finance Ministry Number of poor individuals benefiting from these loans Administrative records General Labour and Information Section Vocational Federal budget/ Recurr­ ent 1.Number of campaigns (meetings, TV programmes, posters} (1} Records of the General authority Training Dept. Civil society organisations Labour and Vocational Training Dept. Local communities Vocational Training Section 2.Number of Nahiyas covered by meetings implementing the campaigns (2) Media implementing the campaign Federal Number of poor individuals Data of the budget/ benefiting from the loans who implementing Recurr- have attended training authority ent programmes -44 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 1.3 (Third output): A system for revising the minimum daily wage according based on changes in the poverty line is adopted. Assumptions:The private sector is committed to apply the minimum wage correctly. Performance indicators: Rate of accomplishment of the system. Impact indicators: (1) Rate of personnel receiving wages below the minimum level. (2) The time period between revision of the minimum wage and occurrence of tangible changes in the poverty line. Means of Verification: administrative record, surveys and beneficiary surveys Tyl)e [ Activities 0 ~ Indicators funding, 1.3.1 Conduct inspection Ministry of Labour & Vocational Training Dept visits to monitor Labour & proper application Social Affairs of the law 1.3.2 Flexible paragraphs are to be included in the Labour Code specifying a minimum wage that is proportional to the poverty line. 1.3.3 Council of Labour & Representati- Vocational ves,Ministry Training Dept. of Labour & Social Affairs Trade unions Planning Dept. in the Ministry of Planning and Development Cooperation Federal 1.Number of visits budgeV implemented Recurr- 2.Number of institutions that ent applied the revision Federal Accomplishing the law budgeV provision! Recurr- ent (1) Implementing General authority records mplementing Limited authority records (2) Official Gazette Acquaint the workers, who receive minimum wage, with their rights for wages consistent with the poverty line. Ministry of Labour & Federal budgeV Recurr­ ent Number of programmes and Implementing General 1.3.4 Designate a unit in the employment offices in all govern orates, where workers can report to when employers do not comply with the law Labour & Vocational Social Affairs Training Dept. Council of Represent­ atives General Trade Union Federation Labour & Vocational Training Sections in governorates Three-member Inspection Organs* Labour tribunals Federal budgeV Recurr­ ent advertisements achieved authority records Number of units in employment offices in the governorates Implementing authority records General • A three-member committee (government, workers, employers) was formed in the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs to conduct a periodic study of developments in the minimum wage, as currently the minimum wage of unskilled worker has become ID 120,000 in both the private and mixed sectors by decision of the Council of Ministers in 2009. NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 45- 1.4 (Fourth output): Effective employment offices in the rural areas and are accessible. Assumptions: Ability of national Labour to compete with foreign Labour Performance indicators: Number of offices set up Impact indicators: Number of poor individuals obtaining jobs through employment offices Means of Verification: Administrative records, surveys. I Implementing authorities Ty!Je I ~ication Activities M' . t . Main Relevant . o~ Indicators ·1 Na~r lnlS nes 1nst1tutions institutions 1fund'"91 publicabon 1.4.1 Employment offices Ministry of La- Labour Dept. Labour Section Federal/ Number of private sector jobs Implementing General coordinate with the bour & Social private sector to Affairs Recurrent made available within the fr- authority records amework of coordination provide job opport- Governorate unities councils 1.4.2 Employment offices coordinate with the agencies responsible for training rehabilit­ ating and enhancing the poor working skills Ministry of Pl­ anning Ministry of Labour sections Job Finding Section Federal/ Labour & in all governorates Governorates Affairs. Recurrent Social Affairs Office records 1.5 (Fifth output): Government supported pro-poor initiatives by civil society. Assumptions: Civil society benefits from government support for pro-poor purposes Performance indicators: Number of civil society organisations having pro-poor programmes. Impact indicators: Number of civil society pro-poor initiatives Means of Verification: Administrative records Number of poor General trained beneficiaries [ lmpleme~ting authorities -~---, Type I . ~ Activities [ M' . t. Main ~ Relevant 0 ~ Indicators lnlS nes institutions I institutions fund'"91 publication 1.5.1 Participation in inco­ me-generating prog­ rammes for the poor, which donors contribute to 1.5.2 Council of Ministers Government provi- Council of Mi- des facilities and nisters' funding to organi- Secretariat sations which have programmes Ministry of State targeting the poor. for Civil Socie- ty Affairs Council of Minis­ ters' Secretariat Dept. of non­ governmental organisations Ministry of Finance Federal budgeU Recurrent Volume of government funding in the programmes (1) Ministry of General Finance records (2) Records of civil society orga- nisations having funded programmes Civil society organisations Federal Number of civil society orga- Donor's records General budgeU nisations that have obtained Recurrent grants and faculties -46 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 1.6 (Sixth output: Evening handcraft centers and rapid training programmes have been established or activated for the poor on income-generating vocations. Assumptions: Enrolment of the poor in the centers and training programmes Performance indicators: Number of the poor enrolled in the centers and training programmes Impact indicators: Number of workers in income-generating vocations for the poor Means of verification: Administrative records and surveys I Implementing authorities I Type I Activities ~ --Main --Rel~ 0 ~ Indicators mis nes institutions institutions fund'"g, 1.6.1 Organize awareness campaigns for the poor to encourage them enroll in training centers and programmes 1.6.2 Civil society organi­ sations participate in opening training centers for the poor Ministry of Labour and Planning and Follow-up Federal Labour and Training Department Department/ budget/ Social Affairs Recurrent Secretariat General of Council of Ministers Non-governmental organisations Department Federal budget/ Recurrent 1. Number of campaigns 2. Number of Nahiyas covered Number of civil society organisations participating NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 Method Records of the General I rnplementing authority Records of the General Implementing authority 47- Annex No (2): Monitoring and implementation of the second outcome: Improved health status of the poor. Impact indicators: ( 1) Life expectancy at birth (2) Crude mortality rate (3) Maternal mortality rate due to pregnancy and delivery (4) Under five child mortality rate (5) under five malnutrition rate. 2.1 (First output) Primary healthcare centers are improved and accessible by the poor. Assumptions: •Society is confident of the primary healthcare services •Standard and qualified personnel available in primary healthcare centers Performance indicators •Time allocated for examination (minute/patient) •Doctor/population •Paramedics/doctor Impact indicators: Number of patients reporting to primary healthcare centers. Responsible authority: Ministry of Health I Implementing authorities I Type I . Means of verification Activities ~ Relevant If °J. Indicators M h d I Nat~re I ,v,,, ,,-,u ,1;; .:, I institutions I institutions , un mg et O publ~ation 2.1.1 Training of Ministry of personnel of Health primary healthcare centers 2.1.2 Build well equipped - Ministry of primary healthcare Health centers - Ministry of Planning 2.1.3 - Gou nterparts in Kurdistan Region Increase the Ministry of number of mobile Health clinics for remote areas Public Health Dept. Public Health Dept. Public Health Dept. - Universities. Recurr- Percentage of trained - Organisations. ent personnel - Scientific Associatio- Donors ns inside and outside Iraq. Statistical reports Limited - Public Company for Federal Percentage of centers to 10000 Statistical reports Limited Marketing Drugs and Budget/ population Medical Accessories lnvestm- - Planning and ent Resource Development Recurrent Dept. -Health departments in lnvest- governorates - International ment Recurr- ent organisations - Donors Donors Evaluation of Limited services status - Public Company for Federal Number of mobile clinics Statistical reports Limited Marketing Drugs and Budget/ Medical Accessories lnvestm- - Planning and ent Resource Development Recurrent Dept. -Health departments in governorates - International organisations - Donors -48 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 2.2 {Second output) Awareness of behavioral risks for communicable and non­ communicable diseases is increased. Assumptions: • The poor are ready to change their convictions •Participation by appropriate Ministries, civil society organisation, health departments in governorates Performance indicators: Number of campaigns implemented each year Impact indicators: Level of awareness in society Responsible authority: Ministry of Health, civil society organisations, health departments in governorates Means of verification: knowledge, attitudes and practices surveys. Implementing authorities j Type [ . Activities M' . t . Main I Relevant It 0 ~ Indicators lnlS nes institutions institutions uncimgl Means of verification Nature Method ot publicat1on 2.2.1 Number of awareness Reports on General Conducting - Ministry of awareness Health campaigns through - The media TV, broadcast, printed media and seminars - Media Dept. - TV channels - Iraqi Media - Press Network -Magazines - Federal campaigns during the year activities budget - ~~furr- Number of beneficiaries from knowledge, General the campaigns attitudes and practices surveys NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 49- 2.3 (Third output) Government programme to supply potable water and sanitation services to poor areas are implemented or underway. Assumptions: •Stability of the security situation •Streamlining of resources allocated for projects •Commitment by contractors to implement the projects awarded to them Performance indicators: Rate of implementation of the programme at the specified timetable and to the contracted specifications Impact indicators: (1) Rates of infection with water-borne communicable diseases. (2) Number of population benefiting from the programme. Responsible authority: Ministry of Planning, Municipalities, governorates councils, Baghdad municipality, appropriate authorities in Kurdistan Region. I Implementing authorities I Type I ~cation Activities [ M . . t . [ Main --Relevant If o~ Indicators Nat~re lnlS ries institutions institutions I und'"9 publ~tion 2.3.1 Expanding potable - Ministry of water projects to Planning reach the poor - Ministry of areas 2.3.2 Expanding sanitation excreta disposal projects Municipalities and Public Works - Baghdad municipality - Governorates councils - Government of Kurdistan Region - Ministry of Planning - Ministry of Municipalities and Public works - Baghdad municipality - Governorates councils -Government of Kurdistan Region Appropriate institutions in ministries and responsible authorities Appropriate institutions in ministries and responsible authorities - Federal Percentage of population budget coverage by potable water - Recurr- sources ent - Federal Percentage of population budget coverage by the public - Recurr- sanitation network ent -50 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 National surveys General National surveys General 2.4 (Fourth output) Poor areas coverage by the activities of the Expanded Programme of Immunization (EPI) is enhanced. Assumptions: Stability of the security situation in Iraq Performance indicators: EPI coverage rate Impact indicators: Number of cases of infection in diseases covered by immunization Responsible authority: Ministry of Health Implementing authorities Type [ Activities M. . t . Main Relevant f c:f. Indicators lnlS nes institutions institutions un mg, 2.4.1 Method Strengthening epide- - Ministry of mies monitoring sys- Health. - Public Health Dept. - WHO Federal Number of detected cases Epidemical Limited tern for communica- -Ministry of ble diseases Health of Kur- - Public Company for Marketing Drugs and Medical distan Region Accessories 2.4.2 Implementing vaccination campaigns 2.4.3 Health. -Ministry of Health of Kur­ distan Region Maintaining campa- Health. igns' requirements -Ministry of (vaccines, disposal Health of Kur­ materials, cold chain distan Region and transport) - Public Health Dept. - Public Company for Marketing Drugs and Medical Accessories - Public Health Dept. - Public Company for Marketing Drugs and Medical Accessories - Other relevant inte- budgeU rnational organisation Recurrent Health departments in Federal governorates budgeU Recurrent Health departments in Federal governorates budgeU Recurrent Monitoring reports Number of campaigns Statistical reports Limited Availability of requirements Statistical reports Limited NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 51- 2.5( Fifth output) The nutritional status of the poor is improved. Assumptions: Efficiency of distribution mechanism assuring access of target groups to food items Performance indicators: availability of balanced nutrition indicators in rations distributed to the poorlmpact indicators: Under five malnutrition rates. Responsible authority: Ministry of Trade, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health, civil society organisations, local councils, appropriate authoritis in Kurdistan Region I Implementing authorities I Type I ~ Activities Relevant \ °J Indicators nstitutions , un mg p n 2.5.1 The poor continue - Ministry of to receive full Trade. ration items - Ministry of Health and their counter -parts in Kurdi -stan Region 2.5.2 -to be determined Relevant organizations Federal by the Ministry of and international budgeU Trade societies Recurr - Public Health -ent Dept. Provision of nutritional eleme-nts Person/day School meals are to be reintroduced to primary schools Ministry of - to be determined Relevant organizations Education an by the Ministry and international Federal Percentage of students covered budgeU by school meals its counterpartof Education societies Recurr in Kurdistan -ent Region -52 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 Follow-up reports Limited Local surveys Limited 2.6 (Sixth output): Programme to enhance reproductive health for the poor is prepared and implemented Assumptions: • Women in poor quarters satisfied with the use'fulness of maternity and child care services. • Poor communities respond positively to family planning programmes Performance indicators : • Percentage of coverage by pregnant women's care services • Percentage of births in health institutions under skilled hands • Percentage of coverage by family planning services for married women's reproductive age. I mpact indicators • Maternal mortality Rates due to pregnancy and delivery. • Infants mortality rates • Percentage of children in the household .Responsible authority: Ministry of Health and its counterpart in Kurdistan Region, civil society organisations I lmplemen~~-g authorities -----1 Type I . Means of verification Activities ~ ~ aI~ . Re(ev~nt fun~n , Indicators Method ~ iviu u:::.u it::::. I InstItutIons mstItutIons 9, publication 2.6.1 Implement aware Ministry of Public Health - Civil society organiza Federal Number of beneficiaries of Knowledge, General -ness programs on Health Dept-. -lions budget/ men and women altitudes and reproductive health Information -The media Recurr practices survey section -ent 2.6.2 Training of medical Ministry of Public Health - Universities Federal Percentage of trained (1) Statistical General and healthpersonnel Health Dept. - Organizations budget/ personnel reports - Scientific Recurr (2) Household - associations -ent surveys lnvestm -ent 2.6.3 Continue to provide Ministry of Public Company International organiza Joint Availability of materials and Assessment of Limited standardized Health for Marketing lions accessories services status materials and Drugs and requirements Medical (with international Accessories standards) NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 53- Annex No. (3) : Monitoring and implementation of the third outcome: Expansion and improvement of education for the poor Impact indicators: 1. Numbers of poor students enrolled in basic education. 2. Number of poor students who passed basic education 3. Number of persons enrolled in illiteracy eradication centers and mastered reading and writing. 4. Numbers of graduates of vocational schools and are working. 3.1 (First output): Compulsory basic education law and regulations are issued and activated, particularly in poor and rural areas. Assumptions 1.Active cooperation by households in rural areas and poor residential quarters on the application of compulsory education law 2.Active cooperation by local administration on following up on the application of compulsory education law Performance indicators: 1.Number of amendments made to the law. 2.Number of poor areas in which measures were taken to activate the law and its instructions Impact indicators: 1.Net enrolment rate in primary and intermediate education 2.Proportion of pupils starting grade 1 who reach grade 6. Responsible Authority: Ministry of Education . . . l Implementing authorities I TyJ>e I . ~ Activities [ M' . t . Main Relevant 'f ~~ Indicators irns nes institutions institutions , un mg P n 3.1.1 Amending Article - Council of Directorate Directorate of Legal Aft- Federal Approval of constitutional amendment (34/first) of the Co- Representatives General of airs at the Ministry of Budget/ nstitution to extend - Council of Public Education Education Investment compulsory educa- Ministers tion to intermediate - Ministry of stage (third year - Education intermediate grade) 3.1.2 Build database for the age group cove­ red by compulsory education according to geographic distri­ bution, focusing on rural and poor areas for easy follow-up with the households which have children in this age group 3.1.3 Ministry of Education Initiate partnership - Ministry of programme between Education government and civil - Ministry of society organisations State for Civil and ministries invol- Society Organ­ ved in the impleme- isations Affairs. ntation of compul- sory education. 3.1.4 Directorate Gene- Directorate General of Federal Percentage of coverage by ral of Educational Education in the Budget/ database of the covered age Planning governorates Investment group Directorate Gene­ ral Educational Relations Directorate General of Education in govern orates Federal (1) Number of partnership Budget/ programmes that havebeen Investment prepared (2) Number of organisations participating in this programme (1) Official gazette General (2) Press extracts ( 1) Population censuses (2) Ministry of Education's statements Limited Periodic follow-up Limited reports Activate the relation­ ship with fathers-tea­ chers council in a legal and institutional form designed to disseminate compu­ lsory education culture Ministry of Directorate Gener­ Education al of Educational Planning Follow-up Directorate General of Education in govern orates Federal (1) Rate of meetings of fathers Periodic reports of Limited Budget/ and teachers councils the Ministry of Investment (2) Rate of participation by Education fathers -54 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 Implementing authorities Type I Activities I M' . t . Main I Relevant 0 ~ Indicators rnis nes institutions institutions fund'"9. . . 3.1.5 Review the terms of reference of the Ed­ ucation Information Department in order to raise awareness on the importance of commitment to c­ ompulsory education. 3.1.6 Monitor and follow­ up on the drop-outs in the compulsory education age group as part of the Minist­ ry of Education ann­ ual plan (teachers - field teams, consid­ ering reduced drop­ out rates as criterion for efficiency, etc.). 3.1.7 Ministry of Education Ministry of Education Lobbying in support - Ministry of of the amendment Education of the constitutional - Civil society paragraph related to organisations the extension of compulsory edu- cation Educational lnfor- Information section in Federal Rate of activities performed at Periodic reports of Limited mation Section at the Directorate General Budget/ administrative unit level in ea- the Ministry of the Ministry of of education in the Investment ch governorate Education Education governorates - Directorate Ge- Educational Supervision Federal Rate of accomplishment (1) Administrative General neral of Education Sections in governorates Budget/ by dropout monitoring system data in govemorates and local departments Investment (2) Household surveys - Directorate Ge- neral of Education- al Planning Directorate General of Edu­ cation in the go­ vernorates Non- Federal (1 )Number of coursesimple- Periodic reports governmental organisat- Budget/ mented to guarantee support. of the Ministry of ions in the govemorate Investment (2)Number of participating Education civil society organisations Limited NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 55- 3.2 (Second output): Priority is given to the construction of primary, intermediate and secondary schools in poor areas. Assumptions: Guaranteed support by the Ministry of Planning and Development Cooperation to the priorities set by the Ministry of Education Performance indicators: Number of schools constructed in poor areas Impact indicators: Number of students enrolled in these schools Responsible authority: Ministry of Planning, Ministry of Education, Governorates' councils I Implementing authorities I Type I . Means of verifica 1:ion Activities M' . t , Relevant 1 0 ~ Indicators M h d I N•~re lnlS ries institutions 1fund'"9 et O publication 3.2.1 Establish a database on distribution of educationally poor areas (geographic and administrative) according to depri­ vation rate from int­ ermediate and seco­ ndary schools 3.2.2 Allocate enough fund in the education inv­ estment budget as per schools' levels (priority to government invest­ ment expenditure on education )with priority given to the construc­ tion and rehabilitation of intermediate and secondary schools in villages and poor nei­ ghborhoods according to appropriate time­ bound plans 3.2.3 Achieve compatibility between the reques­ ted school area and the number of stude­ nts covered by com­ pulsory education in the geographical ar­ ea ( school seating - capacity). 3.2.4 Ministry of Education - Ministry of Finance - Ministry of Planning - Ministry of Education Ministry of Educatio Set a programme to - Ministry of provide support to Education the local governm- - Local admi­ ents in building and nistration rehabilitating scho- - Governorates' ols, especially inte- councils rmediate and secondary schools Directorate Gene- - Directorate General of Federal Percentage of coverage of ral of Educational education in the govern- budget/ information Planning orates Recurrent -COSIT -Public Budget Directorate General of Dept. ( Ministry education in the of Finance) governorates -Construction and Housing Dept. (Ministry of Plan- ning)- Directorate General of Edu- cational Planning (Ministry of Edu- cation) Federal (1 )Percentage of allocations budget/ for educational sectors to Recurrent investment budget (2) Percentage of investment allocations for poor quarters and villages to investment allo­ cations for educational sector Directorate general- Directorate General of Federal Ratio of students/classroom eral of Educational School Buildings budget/ Planning Recurrent Directorate Gene- - Governorates' councils ral of Educational - Local Administration Planning departments Federal (1) Number of schools built by budget/ local governments Recurrent (2) Number of schools rehab­ ilitated by local governments -56 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 1) Administrative Limited records (2) Population censuses Investment budget General statements Administrative General records Ministry of Educa- Limited lion statements 3.3 (Third output) The law and instructions of the Social Protection Net have been amended to allow linkage with the registration of children of families covered by the net in basic education. Assumptions: Efficiency and speed of the database, particularly for children of households covered by social protection net Performance indicators: Rate of enrolment among children covered by social protection net Impact indicators: Number of children and households benefited Responsible authority: Council of Ministers, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Labour and Social Security. Type [ Activities 0 ~ Indicators funding 3.3.1 Build a database at - Ministry of governorate, Qadha Education and Nahiya levels on children at basic edu- - Ministry of cation age from hous- Labour and eholds which benefit Social Affaires from the Social Protection Net 3.3.2 - Directorate Ge­ neral of Educati­ onal Planning. -Social Care Dept. I - Directorate General of Federal Rate of accomplishment of Education in governorates budgeU database Recurrent Means of verification ------ Nature Method of publication Social protection General net statements Revise the Social - Ministry of Social Care Dept. - Directorate General of Federal Publication of amendments of (1) Official Gazette General Protection Net law Education and instructions to ensure registration - Ministry of and attendance of Labour and children from bene- Social Affaires ficiary households. 3.3.3 Education in governorates budgeU social protection law in the Recurrent official gazette (2) Press extracts Prepare a mechan- - Ministry of ism for exchanging Education information between - Directorate Ge­ neral of Educati­ onal Planning. Social Care Dept. Federal Mechanism has been set up Records of both Limited budgeU and approved by the two ministries the Ministries of - Ministry of Education and La- Labour and bour and Social Social Affaires Affaires Recurrent ministries 3.4 (Fourth output): Educational efficiency is improved in poor urban and rural areas. Assumptions: Access to electricity, especially to schools in rural and poor areas Performance indicators: (1) Number of training courses for teachers (2) Use of teaching aids and extra-curricular activities Impact indicators: (1) Rate of passed students (2) Dropout rate Responsible authority: Electricity, Education, Local Administrations and councils Implementing authorities I Type [ Activities I M" . t. ~n~ f o~ Indicators mis nes institutions institutions undmg, 3.4.1 Priority in distributing efficiency related ed­ ucation services (e.g. Laboratories, teachi­ ng aids, etc.) is given to poor quarters, are­ as and neighborhoods 3.4.2 - Ministry of - Directorate Ge- Directorate General of Federal Rate of coverage of poor areas Education neral of Curricula Education in the gover- budgeU no rates Recurrent - Directorate Ge- neral of Administ- rative Affairs Method Administrative records Limited Giving priority to tr- - Ministry of Educational Dev- Directorate General of Federal Number of trainees in those Training records Limited aining of teachers Education elopment and Education in the budgeU areas and instructors in Training Institute governorates Recurrent poor urban and r- ural areas NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 57- 3.5 (Fifth output) Measures and activities have been undertaken to reduce the number of illiterates Assumptions: Enrolment of illiterates in Illiteracy eradication centers Impact indicators: 1. Illiteracy rate. 2. Illiteracy rate for age group 15 for women and men. Performance indicators: Number of persons enrolled in illiteracy centers. Means of Verification: Statistical statements and surveys. Responsible authority: Ministry of Education and other appropriate authorities. I Implementing authorities Type Means of verification Activities M" • t • Main Relevant 'f 0 ~ Indicators M h d I Nair lnlS nes institutions institutions , und'"9 et O ubl~tlon 3.5.1 Issuance of Illiteracy Council of Education and State Advisory Council Federal budget/ Recurrent Eradication Law. Representatives Teaching 3.5.2 Establish illiteracy eradication centers. 3.5.3 Organise awareness campaigns to encou­ rage enrollment in ill­ iteracy eradication centres. Committee Ministry of Directorate General - Directorate General of Federal Education of General Education Education in governorates budget/ - Civil society organisations Recurrent Ministry of Education Educational media - Directorate General of Federal Education in governorates budget/ - Civil society organisations Recurrent Promulgation of the law Number of centers accomplished Number of awareness campaigns (1) Official Gazette Publication (2) Press extracts (1) Official Gazette Limited (2) Press extracts (1 )Administrative Limited records (2) Press extracts 3.6 (Sixth output): Programmes which link vocational education with the Labour needs, especially in the agricultural and 3.6.1 rural sectors, are prepared and implemented Assumptions: A clear identification of the Labour market Performance indicators: Number of programmes that have been changed Impact indicators: Unemployment rate for graduates of vocational education ementing authorities Type Main ~ :f o~ Indicators institutions institutions I und'"9 Means of verification 1 Nature Method of publication Provide and promote the wide use of inter­ national reports and publications related to linking vocational education with - Ministry of Directorate General Directorate General of Federal Number of job positions in the Statistical surveys General 3.6.2 Set programmes to upgrade the efficie­ ncy and quality of vocational education and serious follow up of implementation -58 Education of Cultural Relations Vocational Education budget/ new specializations in th on unemployment - ILO - Ministry of Education Recurrent Labour market and employment Directorate General of Federal Rate of supply of vocational Vocational Education budget/ teaching equipment to schools Recurrent Administrative records NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 Limited Annex No. (4) : Monitoring and Implementation of the fourth outcome: A better living environment for the poor. Impact indicators: The status of the dwellings of the poor as to the building materials used, rate of overcrowding and access to services surrounding the dwelling. Means of verification: Household surveys 4.1 (First output): State projects to build appropriate housing units for the poor on easy terms are expanded. Assumptions: The poor benefit from housing units provided within these projects Performance indicators: (1) Number of housing projects implemented (2) Number of building licenses executed Means of verification: Administrative records, statistical data Responsible authority: Ministry of Planning, Ministry of Housing, counterparts in Kurdistan Region Activities Implementation of - Ministry of - Ministry of Housing Building and Construction Federal Number of housing units built projects for building Housing and and Reconstruction Dept. at the Ministry of BudgeU low cost housing Reconstruction - Specialized Planning invest- complexes for the - Counterpart in companies ment poor. Kurdistan Region 4.1.2 Development and - Ministry of implementation of Housing and rules and procedures Reconstruction for targeting benefic- - Counterpart in iaries Kurdistan Regi­ on 4.1.3 Council of Ministers Investment Commission/ Federal Rate of accomplishment of Council of Ministers BudgeU Beneficiary determination Recurrent regulation Development and - Ministry of - General secret- State Advisory Council Federal Rate accomplished of the system for the recovery of housing units costs implementation of Housing and aria! of the Co- BudgeU rules and procedur- Reconstruct- uncil of Ministers Investment es for recovering ion the costs of housing - Counterpart - Ministry of Hou­ units from benefici- in Kurdistan sing aries on concessio- Region nal terms. 4.1.4 Development and - Ministry of implementation of Housing and programmes and Reconstruct- mechanisms to in- ion valve the poor in the - Counterpart identification of the in Kurdistan type of housing best Region suited to their needs. 4.1.5 Ministry of Housing Civil society organisati- Federal Number of programmes impl- ons BudgeU emented for involving the poor Recurre- in the choice of housing type nt suiting to them Grants and ass- istance Encourage Awqaf - Council of General secreta- Religious Endowment Federal Total funds allocated by these funds administrations Ministers rial of the Council (Awqaf) Departments Budget/ entities for low-cost housing and social security of Ministers Investment projects and minors funds to - Government participate in funding of Kurdistan low-cost housing Region projects. NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 Admin­ istrative records . . General Administrative General records Press extracts Administrative General records Carry out and General opinion poll Administrative General records 59- 4.2 (Second output) A programme to encourage participation of the private sector in low-cost housing is designed. Assumptions: Availability of a private sector capable of implementing the projects Performance indicators: (1) Number of private sector companies that have been contacted to obtain their participation in low-cost housing (2) Number of low-cost housing units built by the private sector Means of verification: Administrative records Responsible authority: Ministry of Planning, private sector federations and organisations, counterparts in Kurdistan Region . . . I Implementing authorities I Type I . Means of verification Act1v1t1es [ M' . t . Main Relevant If °J. Indicators lnlS ries institutions institutions I un '"9 1 4.2.1 Taking measures to - Council of - Secretariat of the Civil society organisa- Federal Number of procedures and budget/ legislation pieces encouraging investment participation by the private -Recurrent sector in building modern vil- encourage particip- Ministers Council of Ministe- lions ation of the private rs/civil Society Or- sector in building - Counterparts ganisations office housing units in po- in Kurdistan or neighborhoods. Region 4.2.2 Taking measures to - Ministries of provide infrastruct- Planning,Hous­ ure for these proje- Ing and ReCon- cts. structions, -Baghdad mun­ icipality, - Ministry of Electricity, -Counterparts in Kurdistan Region Relevant depart­ ments in the mi­ nistries lages in rural areas. Appropriate technical Federal (1) Number of infrastructure departments in the Mi- Budget/ projects executed for housing nistry of Planning Investment projects implemented by the private sector. (2) Spending on infrastructure projects executed for private sector projects. -60 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 Administrative General records Administrative records General 4.3 (Third output): Dwellings are surrounded by suitable environment. Assumptions: Provision of sustained maintenance by the appropriate authorities. • Preservation of the surrounding environment by the poor. Performance indicators: Volume and quality of available services Impact indicators: Number of morbidity cases in poor areas Means erification: Administrative records and field inspections. Implementing authorities I Type [ Activities M' . t . Main I Rel~ f 0 ~ Indicators mis nes institutions institutions und'"9, 4.3.1 Implementation of - Ministry of Executing depar- projects for paving Housing and tments in these and lighting roads Reconstruction. ministries in poor areas. 4.3.2 -Ministry of El- ectricity. -Baghdad mu­ nicipality. - Counterparts in Kurdistan Municipal, Electricity and Communications departments Federal (1) Number and lengths of Budget/ paved roads in poor quarters Investment (2) Number and lengths of roads lighted in poor quarters •MiieH·ilffali. Method Administrative General records Provision of public - Ministry of Appropriate dep- Public transport unions Federal (1) No of garages and transp- Direct inspection General transport services Housing, artments in the and institutions Budget/ ort lines provided Ministry of Ministries of Ho- Recurrent (2) Number of individuals us- Communication using and Com- ing public transport daily inc~ir~~:~~~rts munications 4.3.3 Organisation of the - Ministry of market places in Housing, - Ministry of Trade,- Bagh-poor areas. 4.3.4 dad municipal­ ity, - Counterparts in Kurdistan Region Appropriate tech- Appropriate technical Federal Number of organized market nical departments departments in the Budget/ places built in these authorities Ministry of Planning Investment Provision of garbage -Ministry of - Municipality de­ disposal services Municipalities partments in gov­ and Public Wo- ernorates. Governorates' councils Federal 1 .Volume of garbage disposed Budget/ of Investment 2. Number of times garbage is collected weekly rks,Ba ghdad - Baghdad muni- mumc1pal1ty cipality - Ministry of P- lanning Coun- terparts in Kur- distan Region 4.3.5 Establish sports and -Ministry of Ho- Executing depart- Baghdad municipality Federal Number of sports and scientific scientific clubs and using and Rec- ments in these a- Budget/ clubs and parks implemented public parks. onstruction uthorities Investment -Ministry of You- th and Sports -Counterparts in Kurdistan Re­ 4.3.6 gion Awareness program- -Ministry of Ho­ mes for the poor on using and Rec­ preservation of the onstruction environment surrou- - Governorates d. th . d 11 . councils n mg eir we ings. -Local Adminis- 4.3.7 trations,Baghd­ ad municipality, -Counterparts in Kurdistan Region Provision of mainte- -Ministry of nance services for Municipalities, installations surrou- -Baghdad mun­ nding the dwellings. icipality, -Counterparts in Ku rd istan Region Information depa­ rtments in these authorities Iraqi media network Federal Number of environmental Budget/ awareness programmes in Recurrent poor quarters Technical departm- Local councils in the go- Federal ents in these auth- vernorates Municipal d- Budget/ orities epartments in governor- Recurrent Number and quality of maintenance services ates NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 Administrative General. records Administrative records General Administrative General records Direct inspection General or field survey Administrative General records 61- Annex No. (5): Monitoring and implementation of the fifth outcome: Effective social protection for the poor Impact indicators: proportion of persons actually covered by the social protection net to the total number of persons targeted by the net. Verification method: Database available at the Ministry of Labour+ Data of verification centers 5.1 (First output): Procedures have been adopted to guarantee proper application of the Social Protection Net. Assumptions: Society is aware of the aim of the social protection net Legislation of social protection net law Performance indicators: Number of procedures undertaken Impact indicators: Number of beneficiaries 'from Social Protection Net system Means of verification: Administrative records. Implementing authorities I Type I Means of verification Act·,v·1t"1es I M · R 1--t---, of Indicators Nature Ministries . a,~ . e ev~n fundin Method of 1nst1tullons mstItutIons , 9 publication 5.1.1 Taking measures to - Ministry of La- Social care dept. Deputy Governor Federal Number of central and branch Administrative Limited adopt decentralizat- bour and Social Women's care Local councilsMunicipal budget/ committees formed under the records ion in administering Affairs Dept. advisory councils Recuirent Net law the Social Protection - Governorates Grants Net. councils Assistance 5.1.2 Develop a database -Ministry of La- Social care dept. for the households bour and Social covered by the social Affairs in coord- safety net and update ination with inte- it on continuous basis. rnational organ- isations 5.1.3 Design a capacity - Ministry of Social care dept. building programme Labour and S- ta rehabilitate and ocial Affairs in train personnel on coordination proper application with internatio- of the Social Prate- nal organisati- ction Net. ans 5.1.4 International organisations International organisations International Rater of completion of organisations database (Wond Bank) Grants Number or workers And finished training Assistance Prepare firm monit­ oring reports on work mechanism and law implemen­ tation by Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. -Ministry of La- -Inspector-General Integrity Commission Federal Number of periodic control bour and Social -Financial Control/ Comptroller-general Dept budget/ reports Affairs follow-up Recuirent - Govemorates Councils 5.1.5 Administrative Limited data Administrative Limited records Official reports Limited Expedite the Smart -Ministry of La- -Social care dept Card System proc- bour and Social (Main office). Rafidain Bank Federal Number of people covered by Official reports Limited budget/ the smart card edures. Affairs -Women's care -Ministry of Dept Finance 5.1.6 Design a media pro- Ministry of Social care dept/ gramme addressing Labour and Information bureau the public to make Social Affairs at the Ministry them aware of their rights, eligibility con- ditions and penalties for breach of the so- cial protection net regulations. Recuirent Media audio-visual and Federal Total number of work days read channels budget/ spent to prepare the Recurrent programme -62 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 Statistical documentation General Implementing authorities Type I Activities I M' . t . Main I Relevant 0 ~ Indicators rnis nes institutions institutions fund'"9. 5.1.7 Initiate partnership -Ministry of La­ with civil society or- bour and Soci­ ganisations in large- al Affairs ting the poor and - Ministry of evaluating the Soci- State for civil al Protection Net. Society Organ­ isations Affairs 5.1.8 Projects and Reconstruction departments Governorates Councils Federal Number of civil society budget/ organisations actually Recurrent engaged in this partnership Private sector . . Administrative General records Set a mechanism to -Ministry of La­ link the amount of bour and Social assistance with the Affairs COSIT Kurdistan Statistics Office Statistical departments in the governorates Federal (1) The time period between (1) Administrative Limited budget/ amendment of the amount of records Recurrent assistance and the changes inflation rate, with a - Ministry of possibility to issue Planning inflation rates for es- - Ministry of Pl­ sential commodities. anning in Kurd- in consumer price index (2) Statistical (2) Percentage of beneficiari- reports es who receive the revised amount of assistance istan Region 5.1.9 Set a mechanism to -Ministry of La- Social Care Dept. Appropriate departments Federal Number of beneficiaries from cover the displaced bour and Social in the Ministry of Migration budget/ assistance people by the social Affairs and Displaced and Social Recurrent protection net. -Ministry of Mi- Care depts .. in the gration and the governorates. Displaced 5.1.10 Set a mechanism Ministry of La- to cover the beggars bour and by the social prate- Social Affairs ction net. Social Care department Appropriate departments Federal Number of beneficiaries from in the Ministry of Interior budget/ assistance and the Social Care dep- Recurrent artments in governorates NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 Administrative General and statistical records Administrative General and statistical records 63- 5.2 (Second output): The adopted national poverty line is used in specifying the categories targeted by the Social Protection Net. Assumptions: Determining the targeted groups by using the national poverty line Performance indicators: 1.Time period between modification of the amount of assistance and the radical changes in poverty line. 2.Rate of beneficiaries receiving the revised amount of assistance. Impact indicators: Number and type of groups targeted by the assistance Means of verification: Administrative records. Implementing authorities [ Type . ~ ation Activities I M" . t . Main ~ Relevant I of Indicators Natr lnlS nes institutions I institutions fund1ng publ~ on 5.2.1 Updating the national poverty line on annu­ al basis using data from household sur­ veys and other stati­ stical sources to det­ ermine which house­ holds are targeted - Ministry of -COSIT Planning Statistics departments in the govemorates Federal Time period between modific- Household surveys Limited budget/ ation of the poverty line and by assistance. - Ministry of Planning in Kurdistan Region - Kurdistan Region Statistics Office Recurrent major changes in the poor co- nsumer price index 5.3 (Third output): Procedures to phase out of the food ration system have been set up and implemented, in order to target the poor and the most needy categories. Assumptions: Availability of a reliable database that could be used in identifying the poor and the more needy categories Performance indicators: A list of groups targeted by removal Impact indicators: 1. Proportion of people covered by the ration card to total targeted groups. 2. Number of non-targeted people covered by the ration system Means of verification: Administrative records I Implementing authorities I Type I ~ ation Activities I M" . t ' =-i Main Relevant :f °J Indicators Natre lnlS nes I institutions institutions , un ing, publ~atlon 5.3.1 Transfer the savings -Ministry of from ration card tar- Finance geting to the budget -Ministry of La­ of the Social Protec- bour and Soci- tion Net. al Affairs 5.3.2 Set a system for monitoring, evaluat­ ing and reforming the ration system. Ministry of Trade Control authorities Public Budget Department - Social Care Dept. Federal budget/ - Women's Care Dept. Recurrent -Social Care Dept. Federal budget/ - Women's Care Dept. Recurrent Size of amounts added to the Net Number of control reports -64 NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 (1) Federal budget Limited (2) Administrative records Administrative records Limited Annex No.(6) : Monitoring and implementation of the sixth outcome: Less inequality between poor women and men. Performance indicators: 1. Gap in adults education rates between men and women. 2. Gap in enrolment rate between boys and girls in all educational stages. 3. Proportion of economically active women. 4. Number of women employed in the private sector, who are covered by social security. 6.1 (First output): Programmes for addressing the causes of low enrollment rates for girls (in elementary, intermediate and secondary school) are expanded. Assumptions: • Necessary conditions and requirements for activating the compulsory education law are made available. • Poor households respond positively to these programmes. Performance indicators: Number and type of implemented programmes Impact indicators: (1) Number of poor girls enrolled in primary, intermediate and secondary schools (2) Girls to boys ratio in primary, intermediate and secondary schools Implementing authority: Ministry of Education I Implementing authorities I Type [ Activities ~~I Relevant f 0 ~ Indicators mis nes 1nstitut1ons institutions undmg, 6.1.1 Means of verification Natu~ Method of publlcat1on Hold at least one awareness seminar in poor areas before the beginning of the academic year to s­ pread the culture of enrollment in educa­ tion and urge for co­ mpulsory education and universal education for girls. - Ministry of Directorate Gene- Education ral of education in the governorates Civil society organisations Federal Number of awareness semin- (1) Statistical reco- Limited budget/ ars implemented according to rd of activities 6.1.2 Give priority to the establishment of gi­ rls' primary and se­ condary schools in poor areas. 6.1.3 Activate the monito­ ring and evaluation system of enrollment rates in primary and secondary schools and identify the prog­ ress achieved. 6.1.4 - Local and Administrative Administrations units (Nahiyas) - Ministry of Education - Directorate General of School Buildings - Local - Governorates Administrations administration Ministry of Education -Planning and Foll­ ow-up Department at the Ministry. - Counterparts in Education Directo­ rates in the govern­ orates Provision of logistic- - Ministry of - Directorate Gene- al facilities (e.g. Tran- Education ral of Education the sport and others) to -Ministry of governorates help girls reach their Transport Lo- - Private transport schools cal councils administration -Administrative units (Nahiyas) Recurrent administrative units and envir- onment Federal Number of primary and secon­ budget/ dary schools built for girls ace­ Recurrent ording lo administrative units and environment Federal (1) Number of reports prepared budget/ for monitoring and evaluation Recurrent (1) Rates and indicators of progress made (2) Press extracts Official statistics General of the Ministry of Education Official statistics General of the Ministry of Education Federal Number of transport fleets Statistical General budget/ allocated for driving girl stu- documentation Recurrent dents to school NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 65- 6.2 (Second output): Specialised training programmes for poor women are implemented aiming at increasing job opportunities available to them. Assumptions: • Participation of the private sector and civil society organisations in organizing specialized training courses for women. • High women enrolment rate in these courses. Performance indicators: (1) Number of government training courses implemented. (2) Number of vocational rehabilitation programmes implemented by the private sector. Impact indicators: (1) Number of women participating in the training courses. (2) Number of women participating in training courses for whom working opportunities were made available. (3) Women's share of paid work in the non-agricultural sector: I Implementing authorities Type I ~ ation Activities ~ n Relevant , 0 ~ Indicators N•~~re I ,v iii m,u i1:: ;:, I institutions institutions ,fund'"9 publication 6.2.1 Implementation of awareness progra­ mmes (at least one before the start of academic year in the poor areas in order to disseminate the culture of school enrolment and to urge for compulsory primary education and girls universal education. 6.2.2 Form cooperation fr­ amework with the pr­ ivate sector to urge ii support vocational rehabilitation progra­ mmes in rural areas. 6.2.3 Adoption of a continu­ ous fol low up system to assess the women training and rehabilita­ tion programmes. -66 Ministry of Labour and Labour and vocational training Social Affairs dept.I Vocational Training Section Ministry of Labour and vocati­ Labour and onal Training dept./ Social Affairs Vocation training Section Ministry of Labour and vocati­ Labour and onal Training dept./ Social Affairs Vocation training Section Civil society organisations Federation of industries Employers Federation Federal Number of awareness progra­ budget/ mmes on the importance of Recurrent enrolment of poor women in Private training centers or workshops sector at administrative and rural/ur- ban level Federal (1 )Number of cooperation agr­ budget/ eements between government Recurrent authorities and the private se­ Private ctor and environment. sector (2)Number of programmes in rural areas supported by the private sector Statistical documentation Statistical documentation Federal Number of follow-up reports to Statistical budget/ assess women training and documentation Recurrent rehabilitation programmes. NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 General General General 6.3 (Third output): Legislations and programmes have been issued to ensure social security for poor women. Assumptions: Existence of a political will to revise and issue the required legislations Performance indicators: (1) Number of awareness and suppoprogrammes achieved. (2) Number of legislations and regulations issued to activate the Social Security Law Impact indicators: (1) Number of women working in the informal sector who are covered by the Social Security Law (2) Number of women working in the private sector who are covered by the Social Security Law. TyJ)e I Activities I Ministries ~a1~ . Re~ev~nt fun~n Indicators Means of verification ------- Nature 6.3.1 Establish a social security fund for workers in the informal sector. 6.3.2 Set up an effective monitoring system for the implementa­ tion of the Social Security law, in order to ensure working woman's rights. 6.3.3 Organise awareness programmes targeting women, especially in rural areas, to abide by the social security system. 6.3.4 Prepare pro-women programmes to gua- rantee and acquaint women with their rights. - Council of Ministers - Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. 1nst1tut1ons institutions 9, Pension and General Federation for Federal (1) Rate of work accomplished Social Security Trade Unions budget/ to create the fund Dept. Workers Recurrent (2) Number of branches opened Method of publication Administrative General records Ministry of Labour Dept. Federal (1) Number of private sector (1) Statistical General Labour and Pension and Soci- Social Affairs. al Security Dept./ Ministry of Labour Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs Workers General Federation for Trade Unions Pension and Social Security Dept. Workers Labour and Vocational Traini- ng Dept. Pension and Social Security Dept. budget/ establishments visited to records Recurrent inspect implementation of the (2) Industrial survey Labour Law of the private sector Mixed (2) Number of women benef- (3) Reports on deg­ sector iting from the Social Security ree of benefiting Private sector Law from the Law Media satellite channels Federal Number of women-geared ( 1) Statistical budget/ awareness programmes to documentation Recurrent abide by the Social security (2) Reports on regulation in the Iraqi rural degree of benefiting areas. from the Law Public sector Federal Number of pro-women ( 1) Statistical budget/ programmes to guarantee documentation Private sector Recurrent their rights distributed (2) Reports on Private according to relevant entities degree of benefi- Civil society sector ting from the Law organisations General Generaf NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR POVERTY REDUCTION 2009 67- Ministry of Planning & Development Cooperation Central Organization for Statistics www.cosit.gov.iq Ministry of Planning Kurdistan Region Government (KRG) www.krso.net World Bank www.worldbank.org www. world ban k.ord/iq 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80