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10.2  |  Reconstruction: July 2004 to July 2009
Key economic and social indicators
1065.  It is possible to consider the impact of the international community’s
reconstruction efforts in Iraq by looking at the changes in a number of key indicators.
The table below presents selected economic and social indicators.
1066.  In relation to the economy:
Electricity production fell from around 4,000 megawatts (MW) per day before
the invasion to 500MW in May 2003 (immediately after the invasion), before
recovering to around 4,000MW in June 2004 (the transition to a sovereign Iraqi
Government).628 By July 2009, production was around 6,000MW.
Oil production fell from around 2.9m barrels a day (bpd) before the invasion to
around 0.3m bpd in May 2003, before recovering to 2.3m bpd by June 2004.
By 2009, production remained below pre-conflict levels.
1067.  The under-five mortality rate fell from 42 to 38 (per 1,000 live births) between
2003 and 2009. Other key social indicators remained stable.
1068.  Perceptions of corruption in Iraq worsened between 2003 and 2009. Iraq fell
from 113th out of 133 countries surveyed for Transparency International’s Corruption
Perceptions Index in 2003, to 176th out of 180 countries surveyed in 2009.
1069.  The UN’s 2009 Common Country Assessment concluded that, while Iraq had
fulfilled its constitutional mandate requiring 25 percent of Parliamentary seats to be
filled by women, women remained under-represented at higher levels within the
public sector and government.629 Women also had higher illiteracy levels than men,
participated in smaller numbers in the labour force, were paid less and were segregated
into certain occupations. A disproportionate number of households in poverty were
headed by women.
628  Brookings, Iraq Index, Electricity.
629  UN, 2009, Common Country Assessment: Iraq.
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