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home > by publication type > essential documents > Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction Report: "Hard Lessons: The Iraq Reconstruction Experience"
Published December 2008
This is a draft version of a report by the Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction; it was given to the New York Times and news service ProPublica.
The 513-page report "reviews the Iraq reconstruction experience from mid-2002 through late
2008. Like SIGIR’s previous lessons-learned reports, this study is not an audit. Rather it arises
from our congressional mandate to provide 'advice and recommendations on policies to promote
economy, efficiency, and effectiveness' in programs created for Iraq’s relief and reconstruction." The report states that the U.S. is "still struggling" and that it "invaded Iraq without a clear idea of how to rebuild the country. Through trial and error, and amid constant bloodshed, American agencies, the military and contractors struggled to come up with a solution. The final success remains in doubt."
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