Iraqi officials visit Belfast on public utilities mission

A group of senior officials from the new Iraqi civil administration arrived in Belfast today to gain an insight into the operation of vital public utilities.

The 11 strong delegation includes senior managers from Iraq’s electricity and water services, as well as the municipal authorities in the Basra and Thi Qar provinces. They will be spending three days as guests of Belfast City Council, the Department for Regional Development's Water Service and Northern Ireland Electricity.

Their visit has been arranged by the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq’s southern region, which is overseeing the development of the country’s public utilities through both direct assistance and a programme of mentoring and professional development.

During their three day visit, the officials will undertake a series of site visits and workshops organized by their three host organizations. They will also look at Belfast City Council operations such as street cleaning, refuse collection, landfill operation and recycling, as well as the provision of leisure and community facilities, fleet management, building maintenance and the Council’s committee system.

The DRD Water Service will spotlight water treatment and distribution, sewerage infrastructure, laboratory and telemetry facilities, while other delegates will look at electricity supply and distribution, and renewable energy sources, courtesy of Northern Ireland Electricity.

The delegation – which also is being accompanied by Ambassador Barbara Contini, Governorate Co-ordinator of Thi Qar Province – was officially welcomed to Belfast by the Lord Mayor, Councillor Martin Morgan, this morning before dispersing to their host organisations.

(MB)