The August Review

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coalition_Provisional_Authority The CPA was created and funded as a division of the U.S. Department of Defense, and as Administrator, Bremer reported directly to the U.S. Secretary of Defense. Although troops from several of the coalition countries were present in Iraq at this time, the U.S. Central Command (USCENTCOM) was the primary military apparatus charged with providing direct combat support to the CPA to enforce its authority during the occupation of Iraq. Structure of the CPA The CPA was divided into three geographic regions. CPA North was headquartered in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, CPA Central was headquartered in Baghdad at Saddam's former Republican Palace, and CPA South was headquartered in the southern Iraqi city of Basra. Each region operated semi-autonomously, and all three had the same common goals for reconstruction of the country. Throughout the existence of the CPA, the security situation and levels of civil unrest throughout the country varied by region, and these variances were reflected in the different levels of program successes within the CPA divisions. Non-government organizations and private charities and the CPA Role of the International Advisory and Monitoring Board (IAMB) United Nations resolution 1483 transferred the authority to authorize expenditures from Iraq's oil revenue from the United Nations to the Coalition Provisional Authority -- under certain conditions, including: The expenditures were made in an open, transparent manner. The expenditures were subject to the supervision of a blue ribbon panel of international financial experts, the IAMB. Spending decisions were to be made with meaningful Iraqi input. The International Advisory and Monitoring Board consisted of senior financial experts from the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the Arab Fund for Social and Economic Development. The IAMB had serious concerns over the CPA's lack of transparency and lack of adequate financial controls, which were never resolved. The IAMB still exists and is playing a role in the investigations into the CPA's Financial management.