KTFA:

Clare:  An upcoming government announcement to disrupt working hours next Wednesday

7/14/2023    Baghdad

A government source said today, Friday, that the government is heading to announce the suspension of working hours next Wednesday.

The source told "Baghdad Today" that the government will announce the suspension of official working hours next Wednesday.

He added that "working hours will be suspended on the occasion of the first of the holy month of Muharram."    LINK

Paulette:  And there it is.....Islamic New Year Holiday

Henig:  Parliamentary Finance: Tomorrow will witness the launch of provincial allocations within the budget

Today 12:37    Information/ Baghdad.

A member of the Parliamentary Finance Committee, Mueen Al-Kazemi, confirmed the launch of provincial allocations tomorrow, Sunday.

Al-Kazemi said in a televised interview followed by Al-Maalouma that "the allocations of ministries and governorates from the budget are scheduled to be launched tomorrow, Sunday."

He added that "the budget is under implementation, with the exception of some articles against which the state order was issued, and it was frozen until the final decision was issued."

Al-Kazemi pointed out that "the Presidency of Parliament assigned the Parliamentary Legal Committee to cooperate with the Finance Committee to provide the necessary clarifications to the Federal Court on the state decision."   LINK

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Clare:  Finance Minister: Iraq possesses the requirements of a strong economy

7/15/2023

Today,     
Saturday, the Minister of Finance, Taif Sami, summarized the ministry's steps to support the government program and advance the Iraqi economy, while noting that the Ministry of Finance has been activating bilateral agreements with various international financial institutions that support the establishment of a balanced and sustainable financial and economic system.

And the Director of Al-Rashid Bank, Muhammad Samir, delivered the speech of the Minister of Finance, Taif Sami, during the sixth annual conference on finance and banking services, which was attended by the correspondent of the Iraqi News Agency (INA), in which he stated that “convening the conference is of importance because it provided an opportunity to announce our steps in the Ministry of Finance to support the program.”

The government through a well-thought-out approach that pushes the wheel of economic advancement and provides opportunities for sustainable development, which is reflected in the provision of the best services to citizens through the banking sector, as it is one of the pillars supporting any stable and vibrant economy, and plays a pivotal and major role in supporting the process of economic industrial renaissance by providing absolute support to the productive sectors of Owners of small and medium local projects.

In her speech, the Minister of Finance added:
And she continued: "Therefore, the Ministry of Finance is moving steadily towards optimal development of economic goals by promoting optimal opportunities to attract investment from infrastructure projects and correcting the course of fiscal policy in light of the current economic challenges." LINK

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Clare:  The Central Bank of Iraq participates in the opening of the Sixth Annual Conference on Finance and Banking Services

July 15, 2023

Today, Saturday, the Central Bank of Iraq participated in the opening of the sixth annual conference on finance and banking services, which was held at the Baghdad International Fair.

The Deputy Governor, Dr. Ammar Khalaf, in his speech during the opening ceremony, emphasized the role of the Central Bank of Iraq in achieving financial and economic stability in the country, stressing the existence of changes in the various monetary policy tools in line with the challenges of the stage.

The deputy noted an increase in electronic payment tools in the period between 2017-2022, as today the number of different cards has reached 16 million, with the number of payment devices increasing from 918 devices to more than 10 thousand devices, in addition to the increase in the number of ATMs from 656 devices. To more than 2000 devices, and it is subject to increase during the coming period.

Accompanied by the invitees, Mr. Representative toured the corridors of the exhibition, which ends on the 17th of this month, and was briefed on the latest services and benefits offered by banks to the public. 

The Central Bank of Iraq, 
Media Office, 
July 15, 2023

https://cbi.iq/news/view/2378

Clare:  The Central Bank indicates two challenges with more than 130 trillion dinars facing the Iraqi economy

7/15/2023

Deputy Governor of the Central Bank, Ammar Hamad considered, on Saturday, that the financial deficit in the budget and the internal debt, which amount to more than 130 trillion dinars, represent two challenges facing the country's economy.

Hamad said in a speech during the Sixth Annual Conference on Finance and Banking Services, which was attended by the Shafaq News Agency correspondent, that the Central Bank of Iraq has an essential role to cover the economy and financial and economic stability, which this year witnessed many and many changes to contribute towards achieving stability in Iraq.

He added that there are great opportunities for the economy, including the gross domestic product and the surplus in the budget law and international oil prices, and despite these opportunities, there are challenges, including the approval of the budget law in a very large size, with public expenditures reaching 198 trillion dinars as planned for this year, with a fiscal deficit. It amounted to 64 trillion dinars, and this in itself is a challenge for the economy and the Central Bank of Iraq in particular.

And Hamad added that there is another challenge, which is the internal debt, which amounted to about 70 trillion dinars. The challenge is facing the monetary authority, as well as the financial mechanism for managing this debt, because it represents great pressure on the various monetary policy tools.

He also said that in the previous edition of the conference, we mentioned the importance of electronic payment and represented it from an important performance to achieve economic growth, financial inclusion and financial depth, and we mentioned that there must be a compulsion to adopt its tools, as it was achieved this year through the great support of the current Iraqi government and efforts Launched by the Central Bank of Iraq, and as you know many of them, especially forcing public and private institutions to use electronic payment tools.

And the Deputy Governor of the Central Bank increased by saying: We have recently witnessed a great movement by the public sector as well as the private sector in adopting electronic payment tools, and this is a very important thing for achieving economic growth and financial affairs in Iraq.

He also pointed out that in this regard, we note that there is an increase and rise in electronic payment tools, various cards, from 6 million cards to 16 million cards, as well as an increase in the number of payment devices from 918 devices to more than 10 thousand devices.

He noted the increase in the number of automated teller machines (ITMs) from 656 to more than 2,000, which is constantly increasing. Also, there is an increase in the number of open and active electronic wallets from 222,000 to more than 3 million, which represents a real shift for the sector.

For his part, Representative Muhammad Nuri said in a speech on behalf of the First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Mohsen Al-Mandalawi, during the same conference, “This conference is a prominent event that brings together academic, banking and specialists minds to come at an important time when the country is witnessing transformations and developments in the financial sector and banking services and contributes to development.” sustainable.”

He added that "financial and banking services play an important role in the Iraqi economy, and we realize the importance of sectors in supporting the economy."

In his speech, Mandalawi stated that "providing financing and credit for small and medium-sized companies and large projects contributes to the development of the business sector and the creation of new opportunities, which enhances economic growth and reduces unemployment, in addition to the banking sector playing an important role in improving the lives of citizens and providing banking services that are widely spread."

He continued, saying, "We have to focus on important issues by providing financial and banking services to enhance financial stability and combat corruption by enhancing transparency and improving the financial and banking system," noting that "the conference is an important opportunity to enhance the development of offering banking and financial services, and we in the legislative authority are working to strengthen the infrastructure Banking and finance and developing modern and innovative means to serve citizens.   LINK