Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/62913
R BY HERBERT J. DAVIS ecently, I was recruited to undertake an incredible challenge. I was asked to complete a comprehensive assessment of the business and finance education delivered by Iraq's colleges of management and economics. According to the technical proposal I received, I was to help these busi- ness schools with curriculum design and capacity building, provide technical assis- tance, seek out university partnering opportunities through a grants mechanism, and identify and recruit faculty consultants to assist with upgrading curricula. But I was astonished to see that the technical proposal included another item among my responsibilities: I also was to introduce Iraq's colleges of manage- ment and economics to AACSB accreditation. My first reaction was to ask, "Who wrote this?" Iraq currently has 32 public and private universities with colleges of manage- ment and economics. The oldest university, or the "Mother University" as the Iraqis like to say, is the University of Baghdad. Most American business educa- tors would not believe that any of Iraq's business schools would be ready to even consider international accreditation. Soon, however, I came to realize that most educators outside of the Middle East are misinformed about higher education in Iraq. Prior to the 1990s, Iraq's universities were among the leaders in higher education in the Middle East. These universities were sought-after destinations for students interested in religion, lan- guages, and philosophical thought, as well as professional fields like engineering, pharmacy and medicine. Iraq itself possesses the world's third-largest proven oil reserves, making it a potentially powerful player in the global economy and plac- ing it in a position to regain a position of prominence. Since 2003, the United States has contributed significantly to refurbishing Iraq's devastated universities, including $750,000 through USAID for textbooks in business and other subjects related to the practice of finance and accounting. The country's major universities in key urban areas, particularly those in and around Baghdad, have a fairly good infrastructure, including reasonably well-equipped classrooms with computer and Internet capability, although demand certainly exceeds availability. BizEd May/June 2012 37 ROBERT HARDING/GLOW IMAGES, AMANA IMAGES/GLOW IMAGES