"Tidbits From TNT" Sunday 5-30-2021

TNT:

Tishwash:  Indonesia announces plans for central bank digital currency

The Bank of Indonesia has announced plans to issue a central bank digital currency (CBDC), becoming the latest global central bank to indicate a move towards a state-backed digital currency.

The bank’s governor, Perry Warjiyo, recently announced the plans to launch a digital rupiah, amid surging uptake of digital payment solutions in the country.

Noting the rupiah remains the only legal currency in Indonesia, the governor said the bank would regulate the proposed digital rupiah in the same way, across both card and cash transactions.

The bank has now turned its focus to studying the benefits of a digital currency, as well as the knock-on effect on payment systems and the wider monetary system, while addressing issues around the readiness of the financial infrastructure currently in place.

The Bank of Indonesia has yet to release a formal statement confirming its plans, but has noted that preparations are underway for the eventual release of a digital rupiah: “BI is currently still focusing on digital transformation as part of Indonesia payment systems blueprint 2025.”

Digital banking transactions in Indonesia have leapt by over 60% year-on-year, with the digital currency being issued against a backdrop of growing interest in digital currencies.

The news comes after last week’s announcement from the Indonesian financial regulator that plans were underway to tax capital gains from digital currency, alongside plans for a digital currency transaction tax put forward by the Commodity Futures Trade Regulatory Agency.

The move comes at a time of increasing efforts towards launching central bank digital currencies from central banks around the world, most notably in China where plans are already at an advanced stage of testing.

Digital currency in Indonesia was outlawed as a form of payment in 2017, despite digital currency trading remaining legal in the country, underlining the government’s mixed approach to regulating the sector.  link

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Tishwash:  The delegation of the region in Baghdad to implement the budget agreement and communicate the formula for delivering oil to the federal government

On Sunday, May 30, 2021, a member of the Parliament of the Kurdistan Region, Othman Karim, revealed the most prominent files .that the Kurdish delegation will discuss during its visit to Baghdad

Karim said in an interview with "The Obelisk" that the files that the delegation, which includes a group of ministers, will discuss is the implementation of the budget agreement, and a formula regarding the delivery of the region's oil to Baghdad, as well as the federal government's sending of the sums .allocated to Kurdistan

He added that the other files will focus on managing border crossings, financial returns, customs tariffs, and sending salaries to employees in the region .who have a direct connection with the federal government

He pointed out that the issue of the Peshmerga and its redeployment in the disputed areas is not within the competence of the current delegation, but .rather there are military delegations that will visit Baghdad soon to discuss this file and complete coordination with the Iraqi army
The agreement signed last December stipulates that Kurdistan be given a share in the budget of up to 12.6% in return for the region's delivery of .250,000 barrels of oil per day, and half of the revenues of the border crossings to Baghdad

The political blocs in the Iraqi parliament rejected the agreement that was included in the draft budget, at a time when the government of the blocs opposed to the bill complains that the Erbil government should hand over the entire oil management file to the federal government in exchange for .Kurdistan getting its share in the budget The issue of the region’s share does not constitute the only point of contention between Baghdad and Erbil.

zThere are other points. Article 140 is still pending, and it is a constitutional issue and has not yet been implemented, and there is the issue of the Peshmerga, which has not yet been implemented, and the problem of the disputed areas has not yet been implemented as well, calling for an agreement to be reached. One package to .solve all outstanding problems   link

Tishwash:  Parliamentary Finance stresses the importance of the visit of the delegation of the Kurdistan Regional Government to Baghdad

A delegation from the Kurdistan Regional Government is scheduled to visit the capital, Baghdad, to meet with officials in the federal government to discuss the implementation of the provisions of the budget law for the current year.

Representative Jamal Kougar, a member of the Parliamentary Finance Committee, said in an exclusive statement to PUKmedia : A delegation from the Kurdistan Region will visit the capital, Baghdad, and this visit is very necessary to discuss the Kurdistan Region’s share of the budget.

He added: The delegation's visit is very necessary because the Kurdistan Region has financial dues to the federal government and must claim them, and the federal government will determine what the Kurdistan Regional Government must submit to obtain the dues.

He said: The delegation will meet with the Ministers of Finance and Oil and the Office of Financial Supervision in the Federal Government, and the meetings will be technical only, and will address the mechanisms of determining the Kurdistan Region's share of the budget.

For his part, Representative Sherwan Mirza, a member of the Parliamentary Finance Committee, said in an exclusive statement to PUKmedia : A technical delegation from the Kurdistan Regional Government should visit the capital, Baghdad, to agree with the federal government on the implementation of the articles of the Kurdistan Region in the Federal Budget Law for the year 2021.

He added: The technical delegation will consist of representatives from the Ministries of Natural Resources and Finance and representatives of the Financial Supervision Bureau in the Kurdistan Region, and will discuss the implementation of budget items with the federal government.

He explained: The article on oil imports is deducted from the Ministry of Oil and the Ministry of Natural Resources, and the article on non-oil imports is settled by the Financial Supervision Bureaus in Erbil and Baghdad.

He explained: According to the Federal Budget Law for the year 2021, the Kurdistan Regional Government must hand over 460,000 barrels of oil per day and half of the non-oil imports to the federal government, deducting 210 thousand barrels from it to pay the dues of oil companies and internal use, and handing over the values ​​of 250 thousand barrels to SOMO for export. In return, the federal government pays the Kurdistan Region’s share of 13.9% of the budget, or about 11 trillion dinars.

Representative Sherwan Mirza expressed his optimism about reaching a quick agreement between the Kurdistan Regional Government and the federal government on the implementation of the budget items, and said:

There are no technical or political problems that obstruct the agreement between the two sides, so the discussions will be easy and the agreement is close. Maat will be limited to government officials only without including the parties and political parties.  link

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Tishwash:  this is a done deal  it's not something in the works  it seems they finalized it today

Saudi Arabia grants the National Bank of Iraq a revolving financing of 10 million dollars

The Saudi Fund for Development signed a revolving financing line agreement worth $10 million with the National Bank of Iraq, a subsidiary of the Capital Bank Group, for a period of 5 years, in the Jordanian capital, Amman.

The agreement was signed by the CEO of the Saudi Fund for Development, Sultan bin Abdul Rahman Al-Murshed, and the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Capital Bank Group, Bassem Khalil Al-Salem, in the presence of a number of senior employees from both sides. And in the presence of the Iraqi ambassador in Amman, Haider Al-Adhari, and the Director General of the Investments Department, Dr. Mazen Sabah Ahmed, representing the Central Bank of Iraq.

Under the agreement, the Saudi Fund for Development will grant the National Bank of Iraq a revolving financing line worth 10 million dollars to import various goods and services of Saudi origin for the benefit of the bank’s clients of companies importing these goods and services, with a financing rate of 100% of their value, and a payment period of up to 36 months, depending on the type of imports. and the nature of the process.

Following the signing of the agreement, the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Capital Bank Group, Basem Khalil Al-Salem, expressed his appreciation for the efforts made by the Saudi Fund for Development by supporting and financing development projects in Iraq and stimulating trade relations between the two brotherly countries, noting that the role of the Fund reflects the historical orientations of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and its continuous support. To the process of joint Arab action and to contribute to achieving Arab economic integration.

Al-Salem added: This agreement will undoubtedly contribute to increasing trade exchange between Iraq and Saudi Arabia by providing credit facilities to importers to import high-quality Saudi products and services at competitive prices for the Iraqi market.

He added that the agreement will activate transport operations between the two countries, in addition to its effective contribution to stimulating the financial and commercial sectors.

For his part, the CEO of the Saudi Fund for Development, Sultan bin Abdul Rahman Al-Murshed, stressed that this agreement comes as an affirmation of the brotherly bonds that unite the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Republic of Iraq and a desire to enhance cooperation between them in various fields.

He added that this agreement comes within what has been allocated by the Kingdom's government to support reconstruction and development in Iraq, which exceeds the amount of (1.5) billion US dollars, and is in line with the objectives of the Fund to diversify sources of national income and increase the volume of non-oil exports of goods and services of Saudi origin.

He pointed out that the agreement will open new markets for Saudi producers to promote their goods and products, which are characterized by their high quality and distinctive prices.  ink

Mot:  The Middle Wife

by an Anonymous 2nd grade teacher

I've been teaching now for about fifteen years. I have two kids myself, but the best birth story I know is the one I saw in my own second grade classroom a few years back.

When I was a kid, I loved show-and-tell. So I always have a few sessions with my students. It helps them get over shyness and usually, show-and-tell is pretty tame. Kids bring in pet turtles, model airplanes, pictures of fish they catch, stuff like that. And I never, ever place any boundaries or limitations on them. If they want to lug it in to school and talk about it, they're welcome.

Well, one day this little girl, Erica, a very bright, very outgoing kid,takes her turn and waddles up to the front of the class with a pillow stuffed under her sweater.

She holds up a snapshot of an infant. 'This is Luke, my baby brother, and I'm going to tell you about his birthday.'

'First, Mom and Dad made him as a symbol of their love, and then Dad put a seed in my Mom's stomach, and Luke grew in there. He ate for nine months through an umbrella cord.'

She's standing there with her hands on the pillow, and I'm trying not to laugh and wishing I had my camcorder with me. The kids are watching her in amazement.

'Then, about two Saturdays ago, my Mom starts going, 'Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh!' Erica puts a hand behind her back and groans. 'She walked around the house for, like an hour, 'Oh, oh, oh!' (Now this kid is doing a hysterical duck walk and groaning.)

'My Dad called the middle wife. She delivers babies, but she doesn't have a sign on the car like the Domino's man. They got my Mom to lie down in bed like this.' (Then Erica lies down with her back against the wall.)

'And then, pop! My Mom had this bag of water she kept in there in case he got thirsty, and it just blew up and spilled all over the bed, like psshhheew!' (This kid has her legs spread with her little hands miming water flowing away. It was too much!)'Then the middle wife starts saying 'push, push,' and 'breathe, breathe.

They started counting, but never even got past ten. Then, all of a sudden, out comes my brother. He was covered in yucky stuff that they all said it was from Mom's play-center, so there must be a lot of toys inside there. When he got out, the middle wife spanked him for crawling up in there in the first place.'

Then Erica stood up, took a big theatrical bow and returned to her seat.

I'm sure I applauded the loudest. Ever since then, when it's Show-and-tell day, I bring my camcorder, just in case another 'Middle Wife' comes along.

Now you have two choices...laugh and close this page or pass this along to someone else to spread the laughs. I know what I did!!!

Live every day as if it is your LAST chance to make someone laugh.

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Mot:  ~~~ I Really Don't Think I'm Gunna Like This Guy!!! ~~~