A funder recently contacted me for advice about Iraq and Iraq's heritage. Some advice.

Establishing a network and activities in Iraq is enormously difficult. We know that. Iraq is a difficult place to work given the legacies of so many things, dictatorship, war, degraded structures and instititions.

The possibility of developing a strong network of researchers depends ultimately on your intentions. Are you interested in media and PR - then fund the large heritage organisations that are effectively grant-eaters. but dont expect much in return.

If you are however you are interested in sustainability, building trust and working towards safeguarding Iraq's heritage and working with people (often nebulously defined as communities) then do NOT fund the large grant-eating organisations. They will suck up your dosh.

Trust-building is essentially about human to human contacts and working with a view to building capacity (not training people from outside the country inside the country). That doesnt work. What works is focusing on people's own definition of priorities and existing activities.

Trust-building is enormously difficult. You need Arabic. You need to speak the language and understand the cultures (emphasis on the s) that the people you are working with.

Projects that build capacity are the ones that are built on trust and long-term co-operation. Communication should be constant and not just based on projects and funding.

If your project or engagement in Iraq is based on funding and dishing out dosh - then dont expect good results. Then thats just a patron-client relationship, or a contractor relationship. Not good for developing and deepening partnerships.