The discussion of the cultural, economic and political circumstances of post-conflict Iraq enables in establishing an insight about the challenges that post-conflict Iraq has had in reconstructing its healthy political, educational and economic systems. However, the success stories of other countries which were war-torn is helpful in giving hope and belief that there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
The focus of this thesis is on school building delivery process and the factors that contribute to the development of this process. In fact, it is so important to understand that building school is not merely building the physical structure of the school. Schools stand for education and the educational reform in post-conflict Iraq. Hawrylenko (2010) claims that education is not only about teaching and learning, and he presents a definition of education and its function in the post-conflict societies. According to Hawrylenko (2010), education is the key in preventing conflict and also in the reconstruction and reconciliation process as well. Education, moreover, is important in building social cohesion and supporting economic
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recovery. Education has been used as a tool to foster peace. This is done by ensuring that the factors that have led to the conflict will not be repeated, and that questioning of injustice and cooperation will be nurtured. Education and schools help to mitigate the negative consequences of conflict in children and to make people feel optimistic and that life has started to be natural. Education contributes to reducing poverty through three channels: decreasing poverty by decreasing illiteracy and empowering people through providing them with skills for life and employment, developing human resources through training courses, and promoting reconciliation through arming people with life skills and positive attitudes. For all these reasons, the priority of the government should be education and how to endeavour to empower the educational sector.
Before discussing any approach that should be applied for economic and social growth, it is crucial to focus on the enforcement of law before starting any step. Vapnek et al. (2016) presents an explanation about why it is important to consider enforcing law as a priority in the post-conflict Iraq. The rule of law and development are interrelated and they reinforce each other. The rule of law is also crucial for sustained development, the realisation of human rights and freedom, eradication of poverty and economic growth. It also protects the poor against any violation of their rights. Moreover, the legitimacy of government depends on the administration of laws. During the conflict, people become used to violence and to take the law into their own hands. In the post-conflict era, the citizens should feel and notice the presence of the legitimate government through courts and enforcing decisions for all the citizens regardless of their gender, religion, ethnic group or geographical location; in other words there should be a justice system that functions properly which enables citizens to feel secure and safe. The definition of law and its function should also change. During the conflict and in the pre-conflict era in Iraq, law was used as a tool to exercise power. It was also used for the benefits of those in the elite while the majority of people were deprived of justice and using law to restore their rights. So, it is vital that people regain their confidence in the justice system and they should learn to take disputes to courts.
This study will establish a strategy for school building delivery process that aids in making this process smooth and achievable and beneficial for the Iraqi society. This strategy is a long-term strategy and its implementation will take years because it involves radical changes in terms of legislations, economy, politics and culture issues. These issues are all interdependent and they all interact to make the school building delivery process a success. The strategic plan that the current study recommended and which is based on a plan from
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Central America and Kosovo . This strategic plan can be related to some plans and lessons from countries which witnessed conflict and wars and then succeeded in re-establishing an appropriate educational system. For example, according to the World Bank (2005), the key lessons learned from Central America are:
Developing a clear national vision on education reform Pay attention to the dialogue and consensus-building process Move swiftly to secure the support of critical stakeholders Empower parents and involve them in their children’s education
Decentralise the education ministry to avoid bureaucratic derailing of the reform process
Kosovo in the post-conflict time also worked on Education Management Information System, decentralisation and legislation supported by the World Bank (World Bank, 2005). According to World Bank (2005), Kosovo consolidated the educational system in a way that did not destroy the community participation in schooling and education. In Kosovo, communities also played role to call the students back to school through back-to-school movements. In Kosovo,
UNMIK (United Nations Mission in Kosovo) worked with international partners and local specialists to identify the critical potential sources of conflict in the previous system such as exclusion, biased curricula and textbooks, and method of instruction). UNMIK issued Interim Arrangements for the Resumption of Schooling to address these issues in the new system of education.
Stakeholder management
A stakeholder can be defined as a key entity or individual with an interest in the outcome of a particular policy (Srewart, 2009). The term ‘stakeholder engagement’ stands for more active initiatives done by the government to bring together groups of stakeholders as a response to a specific consultation policy need (Stewart, 2009). Frome the stakeholders’ perspective, these initiatives give those affected by the policy a more focus on their relationship with the government and also the start of entrée into the government. From the government perspective, stakeholder engagement means listening to the stakeholders and taking notice of them (Stewart, 2009). According to Mok & Shen (2017), stakeholder management is a
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structured process where strategic methods are used to build and involve robust relationships with the project internal and external stakeholders (). The concept of stakeholder engagement was realised in 1960s and became an essential element of development in 1990s. Mok & Shen (2017) have proposed three perspectives to conceptualise stakeholder management. Firstly, a strategic management tool which is used to resolve conflicts and increase stakeholders’ commitment and sense of ownership in the project. It is also used to apprehend knowledge from stakeholders. Secondly, stakeholder engagement can be conceptualised as an ethical need which increases social equity by encouraging all the parties to express their views in the decision- making process. Thirdly, a social learning platform where the stakeholders can understand each other’s needs and points of view and establish a shared language and communication, and set shared goals for the development phase.
Dialogue is an essential key word in stakeholder engagement in the sense that it has been defined as the process where the company or the government established a constructive dialogue with the stakeholders and which affects the company or the project activities (Tanimoto, 2016). It is also the process where the internal and external stakeholders are engaged in decision-making and establishing the strategic goals of the project. What is most important is that this engagement of stakeholders by the government or by the company is based on the stakeholders’ proposal to change the company policy and management behaviour (Tanimoto, 2016). Reymond & Bassan (2014) identify four participation levels when implementing stakeholder engagement. First, the level of information where the stakeholders receive information about the project. It is a one- way flow of communication. This stage is an awareness-raising and informative meeting. Second, consultation which is a two-way flow of communication and where needs, opinions and interests are discussed and where the stakeholders are asked about their feedback about the scenarios and situations of the project. However, the stakeholders are still not involved in decision-making. Third, collaboration where the company or government works as a partner with the stakeholders on issues such as development and solutions. The stakeholder share decision-making. Fourth, empowerment or delegation where the capacity of the stakeholders is built which enables them to make informed decisions and to take their responsibility for the final decision- making.
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In this thesis, the stakeholders of the project of school building delivery were interviewed. One of the issues to be discussed in the interviews was the relationship between management and the stakeholders and how the lack of communication made the project a challenge. Interviews also showed that not engaging stakeholders in decision- making made things more difficult in the project and that not knowing their roles and what they had to do diminished the sense of ownership of the project in the stakeholders.