Iraq Economic News and Points to Ponder Late Tuesday Evening 12-26-23

Tlm724 Administrator Bondlady’s Corner

Before The Eyes Of The Honorable Prime Minister Is A Vision To Activate The Achievement Of Economic Reform (2024-2026)

Samir Al-Nusairi  Through an analysis of what was stated in the government curriculum of the government of the Sudanese President, which is the ninth government after the change in 2003, and which has been in charge for a year and two months, and which was called the services government, it was able to accomplish an acceptable percentage of the goals specified in the government curriculum in accordance with the vision of the Prime Minister, which included many Of the economic sectors and fields, which occupied nearly most of the aspects of the government curriculum, because without achieving comprehensive and radical economic reform, which begins with financial and banking reform, the full goals and visions of the government cannot be achieved.

Therefore, the government curriculum, as I see it, is a four-year strategy to achieve the economic reform revolution.

The reason for launching this strategy is “because Iraq, after 19 years of economic failures, mismanagement, and mismanagement of public funds due to administrative and financial corruption, the loss of the sound economic approach, political tensions, and instability in the business environment, has led to dependence on oil as a primary resource of public budget revenues, which constitutes up to 93% of the total resources, up to 60% of the gross domestic product, and failure to activate the productive sectors that generate national income.

” Which led to "ambiguity of the vision and lack of clarity in the decisions of the reform process of previous governments, except for some achievements achieved by the Central Bank of Iraq during the past years, in which it overcame the challenges of monetary policy in proportions that enabled it to maintain the stability of the dinar exchange rate during the years (2017-2020) and build foreign currency reserves."

 Excellent, maintaining the general level of prices and the annual rate of inflation around 2%. This contributed to overcoming the economic and security crises in 2014 and addressing the decline in global oil prices by more than 70%.

This confirms that the government and the Central Bank have reviewed the previous reform policies in 2023 through diagnosis and analysis and have concluded that economic problems are the cause of most of Iraq’s crises and that “the real solution to Iraq’s crises is to work in the manner of comprehensive change, and here I mean drawing a strategy for a road map for the economic, administrative and legislative revolution by adopting the change.” radically for the coming years, while benefiting from the experience of institutions and individuals in charge who have achieved previous success experiences in confronting crises.

On the occasion of the Prime Minister’s announcement that the year 2024 will be a year of achievements, it is an affirmation of the insistence on implementing the road map set out in the government curriculum in a way that supports economic, financial and banking reform, and it will be accomplished.

All investment, service, administrative, technical and structural projects to support the national economy and maintain the stability of the Iraqi dinar exchange rate in the monetary trading market. For the purpose of activating the reform measures for the years (2024-2026), the following was proposed before the attention of the Prime Minister:

Firstly, starting a systematic movement to draw a road map for administrative, legal and economic reform carried out by the Iraqi economic, financial and banking elites and competencies (governmental and private sector) by creating the Supreme Economic Council and representing the private banking sector in its membership as the financing sector which must contribute to investment.

The movement should be based on The reform system relies on several important economic pillars, adopts a new methodology for managing the economy, and achieves the central goal of moving the economy from rentier to productive, from cash to digital, and activating productive sectors other than oil to reach 50% of general budget revenues in 2026, creating sustainable development, and achieving diversity in... Resources and the development of economic and human structures in order to properly build the national economy and build the foundations for the transition to a social market economy, provided that its recommendations, after approval by the Council of Ministers, are binding for implementation by the ministries, agencies and concerned parties.

Second - Forming a (Central Follow-up Committee) linked to the Prime Minister’s Office to follow up on the implementation of decisions and having the authority to monitor and evaluate. It is formed under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister and the membership of an elite group of advisors, government experts, and private sector experts.

Third - Moving to the central administration of the economy so that the principle of (centralized planning and decentralized implementation) is implemented. This means that the Supreme Council of the Economy is responsible for drawing up plans and policies centrally and distributing their implementation to the ministries and specialized bodies within the government structure after the approval of the Council of Ministers.

Fourth - Providing soft loans to finance small, medium and large projects and establishing a legal and institutional system to manage, grow and develop them, and issuing a special law for them. As well as issuing and amending the laws of the legal environment to regulate the economic process, and here this means issuing new laws instead of the laws that were issued in 2004. Due to the changes that occurred. in the national economy during the past two decades.

Fifth - Activating investment in the agricultural, industrial, energy, tourism, services and housing sectors, as well as working to reform, develop and grow the banking sector through monetary policy applications and regulating the relationship and restrictions that govern financial and monetary policies, as well as a serious approach to reforming the tax, financial and customs system. Addressing cases of failure to achieve the required growth rates in national income and exceeding the rise in unemployment and poverty rates.

Sixth - Developing a new methodology to overcome the challenges of instability in the financial system and the monetary system. This means developing coordinated and balanced plans to overcome the challenges of monetary policy and the challenges of the non-oil revenue deficit and the deficit in the balance of payments and the trade balance.

Seventh - Accelerating the implementation of the e-government program and coordinating it with the electronic payment system.

Focusing on following up on the decisions issued by the government regarding the use of electronic payment in commercial exchanges and banking operations and activating the establishment of the National Electronic Payment Company, which the Central Bank recently announced.

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Government Advisor: Iraq Will Enter The Advanced Digital Era In Early 2024

Money  and business  Economy News – Baghdad  The financial advisor to the Prime Minister, Mazhar Muhammad Salih, confirmed today, Tuesday, that Iraq will enter the advanced digital era early next year, 2024, with a major official announcement.

Saleh said, “The government curriculum of Prime Minister Muhammad Shiaa Al-Sudani focused on reform work principles in public administration, which took two basic directions, namely eliminating the phenomenon of corruption in general and systemic corruption in particular, which is the most dangerous corruption that more than one detail within the apparatus contributes to.

” The second trend is to maximize the state’s non-oil revenues and make their percentage in the federal general budget estimates no less than 20% instead of their low percentages of about 10% or even less, in order to ensure the goals within the ongoing reform years.”

He added, "Non-oil revenue agencies, which are led today by customs and tax authorities, border crossings, and others, are at the forefront of financial and administrative reform trends. At the level of international indicators, there are three elements that mostly frustrate countries' efforts to combat financial and administrative corruption, and they are summarized as follows:

The first is dealing with paper transactions." With the public and direct human communication, the second: direct cash dealing in settling taxes and others and the risks it generates in behavior, and the third: the absence of digital systems in managing transactions without human intervention.”

He continued: “Based on the above, and in order to achieve the goal of the government program in reforming and replacing digital systems in dealing with non-oil revenue devices, a precise digital program is being rapidly adopted by the government today, and is based on assessment, examination, and electronic collection without direct human intervention and in accordance with Advanced digital systems are implemented with sound national expertise and in cooperation with major international digital companies, in addition to the expertise of the United Nations Development and Trade Organization, especially in the sectors of digital development in border crossings, customs and taxes.

Thus, at the beginning of the year 2024, Iraq will have entered the rapidly advanced digital era and there will be A major official announcement in this regard.”

He pointed out that "replacing payment systems and spreading digital engagement, starting with digital government collection and ending with large and small payments within economic activity, will crown the new digital era for Iraq," noting that "the acceleration in the use of electronic payments is one of the guarantees of banking work, safety and integrity.

" This is due to the decrease in what is called (liquidity risk) in the banking system due to its knowledge of daily flows and balances continuously without stopping, which makes banks deal with (functions) of flexible monetary demand that are not diminished by liquidity or anticipating its loss, that is, without the availability of sufficient information due to the high state of uncertainty.

Certainty, which is the prevailing characteristic in the absence of digital payment systems, which simultaneously disrupts and the need for accelerated financing to support economic activity.”

He stressed that "such phenomena will all undoubtedly disappear in the digital banking system, and the risks of cash liquidity will decrease due to the high levels of certainty in the flow of funds provided by digital systems in transactions between the public on the one hand and the public and banks on the other hand, within the framework of running a highly governed digital payments system." And financial transparency and meets the needs of the growing economic business sector without the doubts and hesitations imposed by liquidity risks due to lack of information.”

He pointed out that “there is an interconnection between financial inclusion, which means delivering banking services to the weakest segments of economic society, and the development of digital payments, as replacing digital payments includes expanding and upgrading the number of bank accounts, and opening a bank account represents the essence of digital financial inclusion, as it is observed with the development of the payments market Digital in Iraq:

The phenomenon of the growing phenomenon of opening bank accounts has recently increased remarkably, with tens of thousands of bank accounts being opened daily and continuously, according to what the Association of Private Banks stated a few days ago, which means that the Iraqi banking system is in a movement of rapid change and development commensurate with And the new digital era for Iraq, the principles of which were established by the current government program.” 

158 views 12/26/2023 - https://economy-news.net/content.php?id=38875

The Council Of Ministers Issues A Number Of Decisions, Including Approval Of The Draft Economic Reform Law

Tuesday 26, December 2023 20:10 | Political Number of readings: 117   Baghdad / NINA / Today, Tuesday, Prime Minister Muhammad Shiaa Al-Sudani chaired the fifty-second regular session of the Council of Ministers, during which the general situation in the country was discussed, the most prominent economic and service files included in the government program were discussed, the topics of the agenda were discussed, and directives and decisions were taken. about it.

Within the framework of the government’s support for the sports sector, and with the aim of supporting the journey of our national team in the Asian Cup Championship, which will begin next month in Qatar, the Prime Minister directed the Ministry of Transport to operate discounted flights for Iraqis wishing to attend the tournament, who have official cards approved by the organizing committee. He also directed The Ministry of Foreign Affairs to communicate with the Qatari side in order to facilitate obtaining entry visas for them.

The Council of Ministers approved the granting of ownership to the displaced and displaced families from the Salin area in Basra Governorate, numbering 250 families. The lands previously allocated to them outside the borders of the municipality of Basra at the real price, as an exception to the public bidding procedures stipulated in the amended Law on the Sale and Rent of State Funds (21 of 2013).

In the context of continued government support for youth, the Council of Ministers agreed to amend Paragraph (29) of Council of Ministers Resolution (23465 of 2023) regarding youth proposals, to become as follows: -

Grant funding for the winning programs will be from the amount of 5 billion dinars, allocated to the Department of Non-Governmental Organizations, In the General Secretariat of the Council of Ministers; To support volunteer organizations and teams.

As part of the Prime Minister’s directives to proceed with the completion of projects whose commencement was delayed, including the Baghdad Metro Project, the Council agreed to include (preparing designs and supervising the implementation of the Baghdad Metro Project) in the investment budget schedules of the Baghdad Municipality for the year 2023, at a total cost of (913804000000) dinars, only nine hundred dinars.

Thirteen billion, eight hundred and four million dinars, after completing the listing requirements by the Baghdad Municipality and confirming that the investor will subsequently bear the full cost of the project.

In the energy file, the recommendation of the Ministerial Council for Energy (23101) of 2023 was approved regarding the approval of the recommendation of the opinion body in the Ministry of Electricity, according to the following:

Authorizing the Minister of Electricity, or whomever he authorizes, to sign the memorandum of principles of cooperation between the Ministry of Electricity and the Toyota Tsusho Corporation. ) In line with the Ministry’s plan and the available financial allocations.

Also in the energy file, the recommendation of the Ministerial Council for Energy (23098 I) for the year 2023 was approved, according to the following:

1. The share of the Ministry of Oil/Basra Oil Company in the West Qurna/1 field in operation will be financed, based on what was stated in the Council of Ministers’ decision ( 2 of 2022) in the amount of (250) million dollars, during the allocation of quantities of crude oil issued by the Oil Marketing Company and depositing their values ​​in a bank account opened for this purpose (outside Iraq), and this is regulated by a special agreement with the new main operator of the field (Basra Oil Company).

2. Because the field is one of the components of the petroleum licensing rounds project included in the investment plan, which is financed in kind with crude oil, therefore the restrictive settlement for the amount indicated in Paragraph (1) mentioned above is organized from the project allocations included in the Federal General Budget Law (13 of 2023) and in the same manner. The mechanism used by the Ministry of Finance in conducting settlement entries for other oil fields.

3. The profit wages, administrative charges, and benefits resulting from its participation in the service contract for the West Qurna/1 field will be for the benefit of the Basra Oil Company, similar to the company’s share in the Zubair oil field.

4. Signing a share sale agreement between ExxonMobil and Basra Oil Company, which entails paying the share sale price after making the final settlement in kind with crude oil.

The Council of Ministers approved increasing the capital of the General Company for Private Transport Management to (30301762716) dinars, only thirty billion three hundred and one million seven hundred and sixty-two thousand seven hundred and sixteen dinars, instead of its current capital of (675) million dinars, with an increase of (29626762716) dinars.

Only twenty-nine billion, six hundred and twenty-six million, seven hundred and sixty-two thousand, seven hundred and sixteen dinars, based on the amended Public Companies Law (22 of 1997), and the Ministry of Transport is responsible for taking the necessary measures to implement what was stated in Paragraph (1) mentioned above.

As part of the governmental approach to supporting antiquities and heritage, the recommendation of the Ministerial Council for Human Development (23037 B) for the year 2023 was approved, which includes approval to refer the projects of rehabilitating the Nineveh Wall and the Kirkuk Citadel (among the projects of rehabilitating and preserving antiquities) to reputable companies accredited by specialized UNESCO, adopting a method Direct invitation, as an exception to the contracting methods specified in the Government Contracts Implementation Instructions (2 of 2014) due to the specialized nature of these projects.

It was also approved to correct the procedures undertaken by the Babylon Governorate and to prepare a contract formula, regarding the project to rehabilitate the road linking the Baghdad Governorate and the Holy Karbala Governorate, to follow the fundamental procedures for disbursing the due entitlements to the two implementing companies (Sarh Babel Company and Qimma Al-Hussam Al-Arabi Company), with the contract including the responsibility of the entity.

The Babil Governorate undertakes to inventory the executed works and review their conformity with the required technical specifications, according to the schedule of quantities prepared in advance, the reality of the implementation status, and the hidden armor reports, with the support of the relevant technical committees.

The Council of Ministers approved the recommendations of the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research regarding returning the headquarters of the Federation of Arab Scientific Research Councils to Iraq, as follows:

1. The Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research prepares the headquarters of the Federation of Arab Scientific Research Councils in Iraq, by carrying out restoration and rehabilitation of the building, And completing the furnishing requirements, allowing it to carry out its activity, and from the revenues of the Higher Education Fund at the Ministry’s center.

2. Instructing the Ministry of Finance that Iraq’s contributions be 50% of the Union’s annual budget, starting from the fiscal year 2025.

3. Instructing the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to facilitate the procedures for employees of the Union of Arab Scientific Research Councils.

4. Private universities provide the necessary support to the Union in accordance with the Private Higher Education Law No. 25 of 2016.

The Council of Ministers continued to discuss other topics on the agenda, and the following decisions were taken:

First: Approval of the draft economic reform law and sending it to the State Council; To have it properly audited, then return it to the General Secretariat of the Council of Ministers. To refer it directly to the House of Representatives, based on the provisions of the Constitution, taking into account the observations presented during the hearing.

Secondly: Amending the name (Baghdad International Film Festival/First Session), stated in Council of Ministers Resolution (23098 of 2023), to become the name (First Youth Cinema Festival of 2023).

Third: Approval of what came from the Ministry of Interior, regarding the project to establish, equip and install an integrated camera system, and the costs of the cameras will be covered from the revenues of the border crossings (50%) share of Baghdad Governorate, according to the contract concluded between the implementing company and the Ministry of Interior.

Fourth: reallocate an amount to the Ministry of Health; To finance contracts for medicines, medical devices, and medical supplies, based on the provisions of the Federal Budget Law (13 of 2023), retrieved from the International Agreement on Vaccines (GAVI). https://ninanews.com/Website/News/Details?key=1097606

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Provoking Points To Ponder on Power:

Power only tires those who don't exercise it.  - Pierre Elliott Trudeau

The only justification in the use of force is to reduce the amount of force necessary to be used. - Alfred North Whitehead

Not believing in force is the same as not believing in gravitation. - Leon Trotsky

The first principle of a civilized state is that the power is legitimate only when it is under contract. - Walter Lippmann

He was one of those men who possess almost every gift, except the gift of the power to use them. - Charles Kingsley

Force is never more operative than when it is known to exist but is not brandished. - Alfred Thayer Mahan

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