Lounsbury: Iraq: Why Reconstruction is failing

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March 28, 2004

Iraq: Why Reconstruction is failing

Actual conversation with the head of private sector development (The Big Cheese, BC), my best recollection. Should be pretty close to the actual.

Me: "Touching base with you again regarding the contacts, people we need to speak with to move things forward."

BC: "Sorry you're catching me at a bad time, just got back and we're restructuring [again] our office." Adds something more about turnover.

Me: "No problem, but we're very eager to start pulling together the data in order to make this happen."

BC: "Absolutely, it is a great project and we want to see it happen if it is appropriate, but we're going through a lot of changes right now, we'll have you the information as soon as possible. [The Group] is never far from my mind."

Me: "Super, excellent, I am always glad to hear that, but you know we need to move hard. By the way, I have the [data source] on [SOE relevant] and I wanted to know if I can speak to the author, get a better sense of status and the like."

BC: "Which is that, I am not familiar"

Me: "The [data source] on the CPA website, you have to drill around to find it but it is there."

BC: "Oh, uh, well to tell the truth it's pretty likely they're not here any more."

Me: "I think it is pretty recent, just found it [date]"

BC: "Yeah, but there is no one here who has been here for more than six months."

Me: [Laugh good naturedly] "Right, I understand, major turnover. Is there any way I can get in touch? I mean it would be really key to understand from a first person perspective the issues here, to the extent it is appropriate."

BC: "Well, a lot of those people are just gone..."

Me: "Right, right. However, I have a name from [data source] might not be the real author, but [name] is identified, could be just a template author."

BC: "Yeah, yeah, I know [author], [author] was demobilized,[author] is back in the US, but I know [author]."

Me: "Great, is there any way I can speak to him?"

BC: "I can try, see if [author] is willing but generaly they are out of the loop now."

Me: "No one is there for more than six months?"

BC: "Yes"

[Get back to nitty gritty, promise to call back, etc.]

Bloody hell, no institutional memory, constant organizational chaos. This is the recipe for blowing through vast funds and doing nothing with them. Nothing truly productive except enriching the few well-placed con artists that can sell these guys an idea.

March 28, 2004

Iraq: Why Reconstruction is failing

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