KTFA:

Clare:  Planning: We will start the census next Thursday.. and the Ministry of Interior announces the start date of the curfew and those exempted from it

11/11/2024

The Ministry of Planning announced that it will begin conducting and implementing the population census starting next Thursday.

 The head of the Central Bureau of Statistics at the Ministry of Planning, Diaa Awad Kazim, said in a joint press conference with the Ministry of Interior: “The population census will continue until December 10, and the 20th and 21st of this month will be for the census of family members,” indicating that “the enumerators will visit families more than once, and the curfew will gradually be lifted from the areas where the census is being conducted.”

He pointed out that "the practical procedures for the population census will begin next Thursday," stressing that "there is no postponement of the population census and it includes all regions of Iraq and no region or governorate is exempted from it."

For his part, the spokesman for the Ministry of Planning, Abdul Zahra Al-Hindawi, said: “820 thousand counters are participating in the population census. We will draw a new map of data in Iraq.”

He stressed, "We completed the requirements of the population census within a year and a few months, which is something that advanced countries are unable to do," noting that "the curfew is not for security reasons, but rather to implement the census accurately."

The spokesman for the Ministry of Interior, Muqdad Miri, said, "The curfew for the population census begins at midnight on the 20th of this month and continues from the night of the 21st of the same month at 12 o'clock throughout Iraq."

He stressed that "the curfew includes the Kurdistan Region and any region where the census is being conducted will be lifted," stressing that "all Iraqi cities are fully secured to implement the population census."

He explained that "air traffic will be open to everyone, flight reservations will not be affected during the census ban, and trade exchange will continue."  LINK

************

Clare:  The curfew begins at 12 midnight and will include Kurdistan.. New details regarding the population census

11/11/2024  Baghdad

Today, Monday, the Ministry of Interior set the date for the start of the curfew in  Iraq  for the purpose of conducting the population census, which falls on the 20th and 21st of this month, while revealing the entities exempted from the curfew.

The spokesman for the Ministry of Interior, Brigadier General Muqdad Miri, said during the joint press conference between the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Planning regarding the population census, "According to a royal order, the Supreme Security Committee for the Census was formed. It took several steps in all governorates and the region and provided protection for the cadres and devices used in the census and provided protection for the tablet centers."

 He pointed out that "the census will be on the 20th and 21st of this month, and there will be instructions for a curfew. First, the curfew timing will begin at midnight on November 19th on the 20th at 12 midnight."

 He added, "The movement of citizens, vehicles and trains between governorates, districts and sub-districts and between district centres is prohibited except in humanitarian cases and extreme circumstances."

He pointed out that "those authorized by the security authorities, the statistics directorates, the store manager, and the employees of the Ministry of Planning are allowed to move to work on the census, as well as authorized journalists who carry official badges."

It is clear that "another exception is for all those charged with duties and diggers from the health and service cadres," noting that "the exception is for the movement of immediate ambulances, traffic and rescue vehicles, and workers in embassies and United Nations organizations."

 For his part, the spokesman for the Ministry of Planning, Abdul Zahra Al-Hindawi, said: “It was a big challenge to have the census electronically through tablets, communications devices and other equipment,” indicating that “more than 120,000 enumerators will participate in the census process.”

 He revealed, "The absence of a census created a large data gap, so this darkness that enveloped the scene will be illuminated through the census," adding, "We will draw a new map of the scene in Iraq that will be like a cat in the flesh to diagnose the problems existing there."

 Al-Hindawi said, "All our work takes a year and a few months, while there are censuses that take five years to prepare for," noting, "We have completed all preparations and are waiting for the 20th and 21st to start the census and impose a curfew throughout Iraq."

 He added: "Not providing data through families will produce an unclear picture, and we ask citizens to provide the correct information and prepare the required documents," noting that "our message to the citizen is not a security warning, but rather to have a stable picture to implement the census properly, and this is the history of Iraq."   LINK

************

Clare:  The Minister of Trade discusses with the Mayor of Baghdad the development of joint cooperation and the exchange of views on the opening of hypermarket projects in the capital, Baghdad

11/10/2024

Minister of Trade Athir Dawood Al-Ghariri, accompanied by the Undersecretary of the Ministry for Economic Affairs Ghassan Farhan Hamid, visited the headquarters of the Baghdad Municipality today, Sunday, and met with its Secretary, Eng. Ammar Musa Kazim.

A statement by the Ministry's media office stated that "the meeting discussed developing joint cooperation and exchanging views on the hypermarket projects that the ministry will open soon in the capital, Baghdad, as well as the rehabilitation of the facades of its buildings that qualified them to add aesthetic features to Baghdad in addition to."

The statement indicated that "the meeting touched on the possibility of cooperation in allocating land to build a residential complex for employees of the Ministry of Trade."

The statement stressed that "the visit aimed to enhance coordination between the two parties in areas that contribute to improving the services provided to citizens, supporting the infrastructure and developing the business environment in Baghdad."  LINK

Clare:  Private banks' capital in Iraq increased by 7.3%

11/11/2024

The Central Bank of Iraq announced, on Monday, that the capital of private banks increased by 7.3%.

The bank said in a report seen by Shafaq News Agency that it recorded an increase in the total capital of private banks operating in Iraq during the first quarter of this year, by 7.3% to reach 19.2 trillion dinars, compared to 19.7 trillion dinars for the same period last year.

He pointed out that the capital of private banks operating in Iraq increased by 6%, while the capital of government banks increased by 11.1%.

He added that the contribution of private banks' capital amounted to 73.2%, while the contribution of government banks' capital amounted to 26.2%.

The bank explained that deposits in the first quarter of the current year increased by 1.2% to reach 123.7 trillion dinars compared to 122.2 trillion for the same period of the previous year, with current deposits increasing by 3.1% as a result of the increase in current expenditures from wages and salaries of employees in the public sector, while savings deposits decreased by 3%, and fixed deposits decreased by 10%.  LINK

************

Clare:  Efforts to amend the {Accreditation Authority} law

11/11/2024  Baghdad: Shaima Rashid

The Parliamentary Planning Committee revealed efforts to amend the Iraqi Accreditation Commission Law (Law No. 78 of 2017) with the aim of granting the commission greater independence and linking it directly to the Council of Ministers.

Member of the Parliamentary Planning Committee, Mohammed Al-Baldawi, stated that “the Iraqi Accreditation Authority is one of the vital bodies that aims to enhance quality and accreditation standards in Iraq,” noting that “the authority is currently linked to the Ministry of Planning according to the current law, but the committee seeks to amend the law so that the authority becomes directly under the supervision of the Council of Ministers, which supports its independence.”

Al-Baldawi added, in his interview with Al-Sabah, that “the Iraqi Accreditation Authority plays an important role in granting accreditation certificates to various institutions, companies and projects, which helps to raise their capabilities and achieve international accreditation standards, which leads to qualifying Iraqi companies to access global markets,” noting that “this amendment will give additional strength to companies and their products to be able to compete in international markets with the support of accredited certificates.”

The MP stressed that "amending the law will enhance Iraq's position in the global quality market, and support Iraqi institutions in opening new horizons for cooperation and trade exchange with countries of the world, which will positively reflect on the national economy."  LINK