Baghdad neighborhood shows signs of recovery

4th Brigade Combat Team PAO ^ | Spc. Christopher Mallard

[robowombat]

Baghdad neighborhood shows signs of recovery

Spc. Christopher Mallard

4th Brigade Combat Team PAO

BAGHDAD -- Along Market Street in the Abu Dschir area of south Baghdad , shop owners are open for business.

Appearing at times more like a promenade with long pedestrian walkways, the old dilapidated stucco shops are set far back from the street. Color-tiled planters line the meridian and separate oncoming traffic. Snarled power lines, propped in some places by leaning poles, bring electricity to these same shops.

In the heat of mid-day, Iraqis gather from the surrounding neighborhoods. They are not surprised to find new appliances for sale, along with household wares and tools.

Next door is a display of pre-paid cell phones, while outside against the curb a fruit stand offers dates, watermelon, apples and grapes from the agricultural sector of Arab Jobour.

Across the street and below a wide billboard, where a woman is shown modeling a bridal gown, a man in a traditional white robe sits on a stool sipping a smoothie, blended from this same locally grown fruit. This is one of the more economically-challenged neighborhoods, or “muhallas,” that make up Al Rasheed.

This past July 14 was the anniversary of the Baathist rise to power. After a decade of sanctions, the economic affects on the country are still evident and are well documented. But often overlooked, with the media focus on large-scale reconstruction projects, is a smaller revolution of commerce that is taking place in the neighborhoods around Baghdad .

With the toppling of the regime also went the command economy . Most Iraqis had adjusted to the dramatic decline in goods and services offered during this era. But a dual economy, which has all but disappeared in the last two years since the Central Bank began printing the new dinar, has dramatically shrunk the black-market which existed for years.

“This was a situation that resulted in an abnormal economy, there was no organized balance of revenue and inflation made it nearly impossible to purchase even the most basic goods,” said Mohammed A. Chehouri, a U.S. contractor working as an interpreter and who also holds a Masters Degree in Political Economy.

Today, when you walk into one of these shops along Market Street in Abu Dschir, there are Chinese vacuum cleaners for sale, Korean television sets and Kuwaiti bottled soda. Border countries such as Syria , Jordan , Turkey and Kuwait provide most of the products to Iraq . Long-time associations with China and Korea can still be seen in the display of products.

During Saddam Hussein's reign, most of the manufacturing base was used for the production of military products resulting in a current balance of trade, which to this day still remains heavily tilted toward imports.

“Competition is a sophisticated mindset after 20 years of a stifled bureaucratic process and will take time before it can take root,” Mohammed said.

Cheap products were the first to make it to these new markets but experts believe greater diversity of products is on its way and will be seen in the coming years as security is improved.

Security, however, is still the biggest factor in building up the local markets. It has become an issue that is vocalized at District Council meetings and discussed by commanders in the field.

Along Market Street , unexploded ordnance and improvised explosive devices have been found and there is active debate as to whether the “squatter” stands near the curbs are too close to the moving traffic and should be encouraged to relocate.

More than a year ago, the U.S. Army, with the help of local contractors, helped construct nearly 168 market stalls which could be used for commercial and retail purposes. But in a country where the tradition of the bazaar has been around for more than 1,000 years, it is slow to convince merchants to back away from the street where they are familiar and comfortable doing business, even if it is for their own safety as well as that of multinational forces.

Adding to the security issue is the break down in essential services, especially garbage collection. A Company, 425th Civil Affairs Battalion, a unit out of Santa Barbara , Calif. , is currently working this issue with 1st Battalion, 184th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division.

At a recent Neighborhood Council meeting, 1st Lt. Cameron Murphy, assistant civil affairs officer of 1st Bn., 184th Inf. Bn., named trash collection as the number-one problem facing this muhalla and said he is convinced that his brigade will approve a project to employ roughly 75 people.

If approved, the trash clearing will focus on the area of Abu Dschir, especially Market Street and Power Line Road , which officials said appear to be the worse sectors for dumping and debris.

With unemployment still hovering around 60 percent, finding young men productive ways to occupy their time is one of the more important tasks facing civil affairs team leaders.

These days, U.S. Army officials said their function is to encourage Iraqis to find solutions to the most pressing problems in their own communities and provide assistance in working these issues to assure outcomes that are mutually beneficial. This is all part of the transfer of power.

Maj. Carlos R. Molina, who recently assumed duties as a CA team leader responsible for this neighborhood, said he is encouraging the International Chamber Of Commerce to set up an office in Abu Dschir.

At the same Neighborhood Council meeting, he explained to members how the ICOC could be an important tool to “provide training and influence with the leaders of other governments, bringing greater foreign investment into Iraq and at the same time helping to open markets in these same countries.”

But more importantly, an association like the chamber of commerce in the area could open up dialogue, encourage fair business practices, and add a knowledge base to these small shop owners as well as public relations and commercial advertisement.

Revitalizing the local economy is nonetheless underway. Civil Affairs units said prices are remaining stable and the dinar is presently trading at more than twice its pre-Operation Iraqi Freedom value.

Secondly, consumers are optimistic. The opportunity to purchase, at reasonable prices, air conditioners, washers, driers, a family computer, and the goods necessary to return to normalcy remains a steady focus for the Army as Iraq rejoins the community of nations on the path to economic recovery.