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Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.
OPA News Release: [02/25/2004]
Contact Name: Jane
Norris
Phone Number: (202) 693-4676
U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao Meets with Iraqi
Minister for Municipalities and Public Works
WASHINGTON—U.S. Labor Secretary Elaine L. Chao yesterday met
with the Iraqi Minister for Municipalities and Public Works Mrs. Nasreen
Mustafa Sadiq Barwari, who is in the United States to meet with government and
private officials involved in the rebuilding of Iraq.
During their visit Secretary Chao and Minister Barwari discussed the
Secretary’s recent trip to Iraq, the mission and building of the Ministry
of Municipalities and Public Works and the role of women in a democratic
Iraq.
“Having just returned from the Middle East, it is of particular
relevance for me to meet the emerging female leadership within Iraq,” said
Secretary Elaine L. Chao. “One of the highlights of my trip was a visit to
a Women’s Rights and Democracy Center in Hillah, where I met Iraqi women
who were eager to participate in the building of a free and democratic Iraq.
Women comprise a large part of the population and their talents should be
tapped in the rebuilding of a new Iraq.”
Minister Barwari is the only woman in the Iraqi Cabinet and is the
former Minister of Reconstruction and Development for the Kurdistan Regional
Government in northern Iraq. She was a member of the economy and infrastructure
working group, part of the U.S. Department of State's Future of Iraq Project.
Following the 1991 war in Kuwait, she worked with the International
Organization for Migration to assist in the repatriation of refugees; she also
worked with the United Nations’ (UN) Department of Humanitarian Affairs to
coordinate relief services with other UN agencies and non-governmental
organizations. She holds a BA in architectural engineering from the University
of Baghdad and an MA in public policy and management from Harvard University's
John F. Kennedy School of Government.
During the meeting, Minister Bawari stated, “We cannot build a
democracy without you [the United States].” Bawari has been focused on
both building the infrastructure needs of Iraq and improving the delivery of
services to the Iraqi people. She is also focused on increasing employment
through much-needed infrastructure projects. Under the previous regime, public
works service delivery was under the Ministry of Interior, which covered all
internal security arrangements. Providing critical public services was
secondary to keeping a hold on power.
For more information on the Ministry of Municipalities and Public Works
visit http://www.cpa-iraq.org/ministries/public_works.html.
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Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.
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