Global Policy Forum

Amid worsening security in Iraq, the course of phasing out the UN "oil-for-food" program is facing increasing difficulties, Benon Sevan, the head of the UN humanitarian program said Tuesday. In a closed briefing to the UN Security Council, he said that due to the reduction of UN personnel and the late deployment of a hand-over team by the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA), the intended joint physical review "has not been possible."

The 15-member council in May passed resolution 1483 to phase out the aid program on Nov. 21, after which Iraqi oil revenues areto be placed in a fund controlled by the United States and Britain that is to be used to help rebuild Iraq.

Sevan said that the number of UN international staff and consultants has been reduced from the total of 769 countrywide to a "small core group of international staff in Baghdad and Erbil." He noted that a minimum of 115 international staff was needed in the north alone, to maintain "an orderly transfer" of over 3.5 billion-dollar worth of completed and ongoing projects, including 1.5 billion-dollar worth of assets to the authority as required.

"Handing over a multi-billion dollar program of such complexityand magnitude during the six-month period ... would have been extremely difficult even under the best of circumstances," he said. He added that the remaining much reduced UN staff members are working mostly at locations far removed from their normal environment and, at times, "without having access to all the necessary documentation."

In the absence of the needed staff, he reiterated his "as is" plan to meet the deadline. "I see no alternative ... to the transfer of assets, ongoing operations and responsibility for the administration of any remaining activity under the program to the CPA, as is, together with relevant documentation," he said.

FAIR USE NOTICE: This page contains copyrighted material the use of which has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. Global Policy Forum distributes this material without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. We believe this constitutes a fair use of any such copyrighted material as provided for in 17 U.S.C § 107. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond fair use, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.