Rising Suicide Rates In Iraq: A Warning Bell For Society And Government

Posted On2024-07-18 By Sotaliraq   Iraq has witnessed a significant increase in suicide cases in recent years, raising increasing concern among officials and society alike. This increase comes amid difficult economic and social conditions.

In addition to the psychological challenges that many citizens, especially young people, suffer from, such as unemployment and social marginalization, which leads some of them to resort to suicide as a final solution to their problems.

The official spokesman for the Ministry of Health, Saif Al-Badr, says, “Suicide is a global phenomenon that causes the death of 800,000 people annually, at a rate of one person every 40 seconds, and represents the fourth leading cause of death worldwide for people between the ages of 10 and 29, according to reports from the World Health Organization.”

“The estimated suicide rates in the Middle East Region are generally lower than in other WHO regions, which may be due to the prevalence of religious beliefs and social and cultural traditions that influence suicidal behaviour,” he added, adding:

“However, there is evidence that suicide rates in the Middle East Region are relatively high, especially among young people aged 15-29 and older people over 60.”

While reviewing the official statistics on the number of deaths resulting from suicide issued by the Iraqi Supreme Judicial Council (as the body responsible and authorized to issue statistical data and figures in Iraq - except for the Kurdistan Region) for the period from 2017 to 2022, we see them as follows:

-178 suicides in 2017.

-306 suicides in 2018.

-316 suicides in 2019.

-233 suicides in 2020.

Al-Badr added, “Official statistics indicated a clear increase in 2021 as a result of the outbreak of the Corona pandemic, as 364 suicides were recorded and 511 suicides in 2022,” noting that “through studying and comparing the statistical figures, an increase in the number of cases was observed between 2017 and 2022.”

He explained that “official statistics showed that the most common methods used in cases of suicidal behaviour are hanging, burning, and the use of firearms, in addition to other methods. The reasons leading to suicide were also indicated as being due to psychological reasons at a rate of 45-50 percent, in addition to social, familial, and economic reasons, in addition to reasons related to the use of narcotic substances and various psychotropic substances.”

It shows, “As indicated by the official statistics issued by the Iraqi Ministry of Health, as the body responsible for issuing data on suicide attempts that did not result in death, there were 1,028 suicide attempts in 2022, the majority of which were by females.”

The ministry spokesman continued, “The statistics indicated that the age group under 18 years represented 20%, and the reasons for suicide attempts were due to psychological reasons at 43%, family reasons at 35%, economic reasons at 15%, and other reasons at 8%.”

For his part, academic Qasim Hassan Saleh says, “The Iraqi governments and ruling parties have not addressed the causes that lead to suicide, although psychologists, sociologists, and intellectuals have written dozens of articles containing scientific treatments to limit this phenomenon, with the exception of one treatment devised by the Baghdad Municipality, which is that fences will be built on bridges to prevent young people from committing suicide.”

He added, "The causes of suicide can be summed up in three: unemployment among the youth, deteriorating social and economic conditions, and backward social customs and traditions. These are the traditional causes of suicide."

He added, “When an individual finds that reality does not provide him with a solution to his problem, and reaches a stage of despair and helplessness, he resorts to ending his life. There is more than one incident, including the suicide of six women in Najaf ten years ago, which came about because of the difficult situation of their children, and because they were unable to support them, they chose to commit suicide collectively.”

In addition, MP Nour Nafeh says, “Parliament is closely following the increasing suicide cases in several Iraqi governorates, which have recently reached exceptional numbers compared to previous years, especially among young people under the age of 30.”

She added, “Poverty, family problems, and psychological crises are direct causes of the suicide fever, in addition to the pressure of studying and results, which have pushed some students in the prime of their lives to commit suicide in a very painful manner during the past months.”

It turned out that “part of the exacerbation of the suicide phenomenon is what is being promoted on social media platforms and some websites, which give a simple concept of suicide, and present it as a treatment for problems,” noting “the need to adopt serious solutions and open up to programs that contribute to reducing suicide rates, which are rising at an alarming rate.”

The MP continued, “The sensitivity of the suicide file pushes many families to conceal the reasons behind their children’s suicide, which is a big mistake, as it hinders the possibility of studying and containing it early through psychiatry, which represents a treatment no less important than any other medical procedure.”  LINK

The Deep Dollar Crisis... What Did Economic Experts Say About Monetary Policy In Iraq?

Alsumaria Special 2024-07-19 | 202 views Economists: There is a need for a monetary policy that achieves stability and protects the country's interests

With the continuation of the dollar crisis and the absence of effective solutions, economists believe that there is a real need to establish a monetary policy that establishes economic stability while preserving the country's interests and putting an end to the US Federal Reserve's sanctions against Iraqi banks.

Listen to what the experts said in detail in this report.  LINK

Minister: Regional Countries Want Iraq To Return As A Global Economic Player

Economy | 01:19 - 07/19/2024  Baghdad - Mawazine News   Minister of Trade Athir Dawood Al-Ghariri confirmed today, Friday, that negotiations for Iraq's accession to the World Trade Organization are proceeding at a rapid pace, while indicating that all countries are keen on Iraq's return as a global economic player. Al-

Ghariri said, "The resumption of negotiations for Iraq's accession to the World Trade Organization is a qualitative event and a confirmation of what the government promised through its program to reform the economic situation, considering the private sector an essential part and the backbone of the Iraqi economy."

Minister of Trade Athir Dawood Al-Ghariri confirmed today, Friday, that negotiations for Iraq's accession to the World Trade Organization are proceeding at a rapid pace, while indicating that all countries are keen on Iraq's return as a global economic player.

Al-Ghariri announced last Monday the resumption of negotiations to join the World Trade Organization, after a hiatus that lasted more than 16 years. https://www.mawazin.net/Details.aspx?jimare=251546   

Expert Calls On The Government To Invest In Gas: Importing Costs Us Billions Of Dollars

Posted On 2024-07-19 By Sotaliraq   Energy economist Kofid Sherwani called on the government to expedite the implementation of projects to isolate gas associated with oil extraction operations, while pointing out that importing natural gas from countries costs Iraq billions of dollars.

Sherwani said, "Iraq has huge reserves of natural gas amounting to 132 trillion standard cubic feet," indicating that "associated gas isolation projects in the southern fields must be expedited so that they can be used to operate power plants."

Sherwani added, “These projects were supposed to be expedited more than ten years ago so that Iraq could reach the stage of self-sufficiency and dispense with importing natural gas and electricity from any other source.”

He pointed out that “the rate of gas flaring in Iraq has decreased from 40% to 35%, according to the statements of the Ministry of Oil, the cessation of gas flaring will be within three years, while self-sufficiency in natural gas will be within five years.” He noted that “this will save the state billions of dollars, up to 4 or 5 billion dollars spent annually on importing natural gas and electricity.”

The reason for the interruptions in the natural gas imported to Iraq is that the areas from which gas is supplied by countries are originally in need of gas, and this need increases in some seasons, because this gas is used in power stations and equipping some factories, as they represent the final areas in the distribution network, so there is always little flow and many stops, and this causes interruptions that directly affect the supply of electrical energy, some of whose stations depend on imported Iranian gas in the amount of 50 million cubic meters per day,” he continued.

The energy economics expert explained that “the United States has imposed restrictions within the sanctions imposed on Iran, while it has imposed restrictions on sending the financial equivalent for imported gas and electricity, and when these payments are delayed, Iran sometimes reduces or cuts off the supplied quantities as a form of pressure on the Iraqi government to pay the accumulated costs of the imported gas.”

He stressed that “Iraq has already paid all of Iran’s dues for the price of gas and electricity, but despite that, we hope that the Ministry of Oil’s projects to isolate and invest in gas will be expedited to reach the stage of sufficiency, and to provide these amounts, and perhaps in the event of enhancing gas production capabilities, Iraq will reach the stage of exporting for the period after five years or a little more.”

Last March, the Iraqi Ministry of Electricity announced that it had signed a contract to supply gas from Iran for a period of 5 years.

The ministry said in a statement that its minister, Ziad Ali Fadel, signed a gas supply contract with the National Iranian Gas Company for a period of 5 years, with pumping rates reaching 50 million cubic meters per day, and its quantities vary according to the system’s needs in order to maintain the momentum of the production stations’ work, and to keep pace with peak loads and the increasing demand for electrical energy.

The process of importing Iranian gas began about 8 years ago, with an average of 25 million cubic meters per day. The delay in import operations often occurs in the summer, which leads to a decline in energy production in Iraq to high levels, and causes major problems for the government due to the state of popular discontent and protests that accompanied that situation in quite a few years.  LINK