Conditions in Iraq 'worse'
2005-05-13 08:25
Kamal Taha
Baghdad - Iraqi people are suffering from a desperate lack of jobs, housing, health care and electricity, according to a survey by the Iraqi authorities and United Nations released on Thursday.
Planning Minister Barham Saleh, during a ceremony in Baghdad, blamed the dire living conditions in most of the country on decades of war, but also on the shortcomings of the international community.
Saleh said: "The survey, in a nutshell, depicts a rather tragic situation of the quality of life in Iraq."
He was at the event attended by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan's deputy representative in Iraq, Staffan de Mistura.
54% access to clean water
The 370-page report entitled "Iraq Living Conditions Survey 2004" was conducted for the past year on a representative sample of 22 000 families representing a total of 150 000 inhabitants in all of Iraq's 18 provinces.
About 85% of Iraqi households lacked stable electricity when the survey was carried out. Only 54% had access to clean water and 37% to sewage.
The newly-appointed minister said: "If you compare this to the situation in the 1980s, you will see a major deterioration of the situation."
He said 75% of households had clean water two decades ago.
De Mistura said: "The infrastructure, particularly regarding water, electricity and sewage is there, but it is reaching the average people on a very irregular basis."
UN's millennium goals
The survey put the unemployment figure at 18.4%, but Saleh explained that "under-employment" topped 50%.
The report also emphasised that Iraq was lagging behind on two of the United Nations' millennium goals, which were to eradicate poverty and hunger and reduce child mortality.
The survey said that 23% of Iraqi children suffered from chronic malnutrition. According to the report, Iraq's total population was 27.1 million.
The report said despite a relative abundance of skilled doctors and nurses, health was another area of concern, citing antiquated equipment, a shortage of medicine and a health system suffering from the wider infrastructure problems.
Harsh economic conditions
The survey also said: "Iraq's educational system used to be among the best in the region.
"However, for the past two decades, wars, sanctions, and harsh economic conditions have taken a toll on the educational system."
Saleh said the report "shows a contrast between the potential of Iraq, with all the human and natural resources that we have, and the unfortunate lack of development and lack of quality of life we are suffering from".
Saleh said: "Undeniably, from the perspective of many, the former regime's aggressive policies, its wars, its repression against the Iraqi people and mismanagement of the economy are an important part of why we are here today."
- SAPA