BAGHDAD, 26 January 2004 — The US Army Corps of Engineers inaugurated a provisional unit in Baghdad yesterday whose job will be to speed up the reconstruction of Iraq’s infrastructure.
The Gulf Region Division numbering almost 1,000 US soldiers and civilian contractors is to repair vital oil, water, electricity and sewage facilities, its commander, Maj. Gen. Ronald Johnson, told AFP on the sidelines of the ceremony.
He said he expected the temporary unit to complete its mission within “three to five years in some form.”
A senior US military officer said the unit would also oversee the bringing in of large private contractors to help repair facilities the US engineers have so far been only able to patch up.
He noted that power was still a major problem, with only enough electricity to satisfy around a third of Iraq’s needs.
Power shortages in war-shattered Iraq, which sits on one of the world’s largest oil reserves, frequently plunge cities and towns into darkness.
Iraq’s electricity ministry recently said the country is only producing 5,000 megawatts, far short of the estimated 20,000 megawatts it needs.
The new engineering unit will also kickstart projects to rebuild and renovate ports, airports, roads, bridges, schools, health clinics, according to the ceremony’s program.
Johnson admitted the almost daily attacks on US soldiers by rebels would be a “problem,” but argued his unit was part of the solution.
“You’ve got to put people back to work and we’ve got to bring back some essential services, so they can get on with their lives,” he said. An opinion poll released by the US-led coalition on Saturday revealed that three-quarters of Iraqis believe working for the occupying forces is dangerous.
