What are the challenges to oil revenue management in Iraq? Once referred to by OPEC co-founder Juan Pablo Perez Alfonso as "the devil's excrement," oil has been a source of both internal and international conflict for decades. In fact, many experts have stated that reorganizing the Iraqi oil industry and properly handling its revenues will be among the most sensitive issues of Iraqi reconstruction. To explore what this means for the rebuilding of Iraq, the Institute's Iraq Working Group on January 22 sponsored a public roundtable featuring a panel of distinguished experts on economics, energy, and international development. Moderated by Daniel Serwer, Institute director of peace and stability operations, the panel examined such issues as:

• What are the priorities to ensure sound economic management and good governance?
• What role can oil revenues play in managing inter-ethnic and inter-sectarian relations?
• How can oil revenues be used to support democratization and peacebuilding?
• How can transparency in revenue management be ensured?

The presentations were followed by questions from the floor.

Speakers

• Fareed Mohamedi
  Senior Director, Markets and Countries Group and Chief Economist, PFC Energy
• Jill Shankleman
  Senior Fellow, United States Institute of Peace
• Vernon Smith
  Professor of Economics and Law, George Mason University
• Svetlana Tsalik
  Director, Revenue Watch, Open Society Institute
• Daniel Serwer, Moderator
  Director, Peace and Stability Operations, United States Institute of Peace