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Friday Nov 11 22
The framework is enthusiastic: the political situation is stable and ?the government must improve the economy.. whose economy
A member of the Al-Fateh Alliance, Fadel Jaber, confirmed today, Friday, that Iraq is going through political stability during this period, which requires the government to improve the living and economic situation of .citizens Jaber told (Baghdad Today), "All the Iraqi people are looking forward and hoping that the Sudanese government will take steps to develop the country and improve the ".economic situation in light of stability and political calm
He added, "The main aspects that the Sudanese government should be concerned with are improving the ration card, supporting the social protection network, and ".expanding coverage for the largest number of people who are eligible for aid Jaber added, "This matter also needs the support of Parliament and the political blocs to see the prime minister in developing the country and making a qualitative ".leap in all fields
Al-Sudani forms a mini-committee to budget 2023 and determine the total value, the deficit and the price of oil in it
An official source in the Iraqi government disclosed today, Friday, that Prime Minister Muhammad Shia Al-Sudani has formed a mini-committee that is responsible for reviewing the draft financial budget bill for the next year before sending it to Parliament, as amendments are likely to be made.
The source told Shafaq News Agency, that Al-Sudani directed, in the first session of the Council of Ministers, to form a small committee to study the draft general budget law for the year 2022 and to make a fundamental amendment to the draft law to become the budget for the year 2023 according to the government’s vision and the ministerial curriculum in line with the economic situation and oil prices in global markets.
He added that the committee will work to complete the draft general budget law for the year 2023 and submit the draft law to the Council of Ministers before the end of this month in preparation for approving the law and sending it to the House of Representatives.
The source also indicated that there is an agreement between Al-Sudani and Parliament Speaker Muhammad Al-Halbousi to extend the work of the Parliament and to wait for the budget law to be sent from the government to Parliament and its approval before the end of the legislative term year.
The Presidency of the House of Representatives decided, on Tuesday, the eighth of this November, to extend the second legislative term of the first legislative year for the fifth electoral cycle, by one month, and in the event that the financial budget does not reach Parliament before the ninth of next December, Parliament will extend its work again for approval. .
The government source also revealed that the total value of the budget for the year 2023 is estimated at 140 trillion dinars, with a financial deficit estimated at 40 trillion, or 30% of the size of the general budget.
He continued by saying that the price of a barrel of oil in the budget law will be calculated at 65 dollars per barrel, adding, "But the Iraqi dinar exchange rate against the US dollar is fixed and unchangeable within the draft budget law."
Earlier this month, Prime Minister Muhammad Shia Al-Sudani set the priorities that should be focused on in the federal budget law for the next year, while issuing a directive regarding its law.
This came while he chaired a meeting that included Finance Minister Taif Sami, Oil Minister Hayan Abdel Ghani, Electricity Minister Ziad Ali Fadel and a number of advisors.
Al-Sudani directed that the budget be at the level of ambition, and that it prioritizes meeting the needs of citizens for services, as well as taking it upon itself to effectively address the problem of electricity shortage, which has greatly affected the life of the citizen and the economic sectors in the country.
And the Prime Minister, Muhammad Shia Al-Sudani, had previously directed the necessity of preparing the Federal Budget Law for the year 2023 as soon as possible.
And the previous government headed by Mustafa Al-Kazemi stumbled by sending the budget bill for 2022 before the Iraqi parliament in its previous session dissolved itself in preparation for the early elections that took place on October 10, 2021.
A number of specialists considered that the delay in approving the budget for the current year would negatively affect investment projects and delay ongoing projects, in addition to stopping the economic activities of the market in the country in general.
The Iraqi dinar will "disappear"... An American report discusses the file of changing the price of the dollar
Calls continue from time to time from politicians and deputies to restore the previous dollar exchange rate and cancel the decision to raise a percentage of government support for the local currency against the dollar, which was taken by the government of former Prime Minister .Mustafa Al-Kazemi, leaving wide effects on the Iraqi market The escalation of those calls in the recent period highlighted counter-voices by specialists, as the American Monitor network described in a report published today, Friday and translated by (Baghdad Today), calls to restore the dollar exchange rate ”.to its previous era as “unrealistic attempts
The network confirmed in its report that “media discourses about changing the exchange rate of the dinar against the dollar to its previous era do not take into account the reality of the Iraqi economy,” describing Prime Minister Muhammad Shia’a Al-Sudani as one of the examples. The dinar, after assuming the premiership, .retracted his previous statements and maintained the current exchange rate Al-Shabaka report described the raising of the dollar’s exchange rate against the dinar as “a mistake that cannot be remedied with a new mistake,” in reference to the demands to return the previous exchange rate, explaining, quoting sources within the Central Bank of Iraq, that “changing the exchange rate now will confuse the local market, and weaken confidence in politics.” Iraqi finance, threatens investment, raises the rates of acquisition of foreign currencies inside the country and pushes .citizens to deal in dollars to save value, instead of the dinar
Economic specialists also told the network, "The Iraqi economy is currently going through a recession stage, adding that" any attempts to change the exchange rate or manipulate the value of the currency will leave huge problems on the Iraqi economy .that will require more than two years at least
The economic expert, Mahmoud Dagher, confirmed to the network that “any move towards changing the exchange rate now will have dire consequences for the Iraqi economy, stressing that” the economy will collapse and the local currency will disappear, as everyone in Iraq will be forced to use the dollar only,” explaining that “the Al-Kazemi government’s perpetration of The mistake of changing the exchange rate should not be followed by another mistake that manipulates the value of the ".dollar again by adjusting it again Dagher also stressed that the Iraqi dinar is "not equipped" to face the financial burdens imposed on it by the financial policy inside Iraq, calling on the Iraqi authorities to reduce the costs of monthly salaries for employees and invest the .financial returns from that to "develop the growth of the local economy," he said The Central Bank, for its part, confirmed to the network that “the devaluation of the dinar against the dollar had great benefits and positives on the Iraqi economy,” noting, according to what the network reported, that “the percentages of imports have decreased with the recovery of local production, as imports for the year 2021 ”.amounted to about 15.6 billion dollars, Instead of $21.5 billion in 2019
The bank added that "the decision also contributed to encouraging investors to enter the private and mixed sectors, with a value of about 35 million dollars in 2021, in addition to increasing Iraq's non-oil exports to about 400 million dollars during the same year, reaching about 4.6 billion dollars from its predecessor, which amounted to .3.8 billion dollars." 2020 dollars Al-Shabaka’s report also clarified that the Iraqi government “failed” in dealing with the negative consequences of the decision to change the exchange rate, which directly affected the poorer classes within Iraqi society, stating that “the previous parliament refused to allocate an amount of 6 billion dollars to support the classes .affected by the exchange rate change, He only gave one billion dollars\
The budget for the year 2023, the price of a certified barrel of oil, and the size of the surplus
The economic steps that the new government must take are many and important, and the most important of these steps is to approve the federal budget as soon as possible.
If we assume that the budget for the next year will be 130 trillion Iraqi dinars, if a new dollar rate is adopted, which is 1350 dinars per dollar, the budget will be 96 billion dollars, and if the current exchange rate is maintained, which is 1480, the size of the budget in dollars will be 87.8 billion dollars. It is worth noting that the current export volume of oil is about 3.6 million barrels of oil per day, and therefore the price of a barrel of oil that achieves equality between revenues and public spending will be 66 dollars per barrel on the basis that public spending for the next year is 130 trillion dinars and the old exchange rate.
But if we impose the new exchange rate, which is likely to reduce the value of the dollar to 1350 dinars (and this is unlikely according to the statements of some officials), the volume of public spending will be 96 billion dinars, and the price of a barrel of oil that achieves this is 73 dollars per barrel.
note
The total spending for 2020 is 101 trillion, not 130 trillion, and if we adopt that, the amounts will be less. We will not repeat the previous calculations. The sufficient barrel price will be 52 dollars for the exchange rate of 1480 dinars per one dollar, and the price will be useful if it rises above 56 dollars in the event that an exchange rate of 1350 dinars is adopted.
Surplus
All experts in oil expect prices to be above $90 for Brent reference crude, and therefore the surplus will be around $22 billion if the exchange rate is adopted 1350 and spending 130 trillion, and the surplus will be around 30 billion if the current exchange rate remains and the volume of spending is 130 trillion, i.e. Same spending as last year.
It is possible to use it to bring about a major change in solving many problems such as electricity and activating neglected sectors in previous years such as industry, agriculture and tourism, and thus we have increased non-oil revenues and we must work seriously to reduce public spending and the most important points is to reduce job slack and stay away from employment and its replacement Creating job opportunities, not hiring.
As for increasing the appointment and approving the law of compulsory conscription, this means wasting the financial surplus and making it within the current budget, not investment, and adopting a wrong economic policy.
Finance stated that the price of a barrel of oil may remain unspecified in the federal general budget, and this is a major financial violation. Otherwise, how is the first article calculated in the federal general budget, which is revenues, because it is 95% approved on oil revenues, in previous budgets and in the event of fear of price fluctuations, a price is set A barrel of oil expecting the worst conditions. In the 2021 budget, the price of a barrel of oil was approved at 46 dollars, while it was around 70 dollars, and after that it rose more.
As a result, I recommend to officials on the federal budget that the price of a barrel ranges from 66-72 dollars per barrel of oil to be adopted.
Sunak affirms his country's support for the Sudanese government in implementing economic reform
On Saturday, the Iraqi Prime Minister, Muhammad Shia Al-Sudani, received a congratulatory message from the British Prime Minister, in which he stressed the importance of continuing the partnership between Iraq and the United Kingdom.
Al-Sudani’s office said in a statement received by Shafaq News Agency, that the latter received a message from British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, which included congratulations on the occasion of assuming his duties and forming the government, indicating that the message carried Mr. Sunak’s emphasis on the importance of continuing the partnership between Iraq and the United Kingdom, and working together for interests of the two friendly countries.
In his message, the British Prime Minister referred, according to the statement, to the common and firm goals that unite the two countries, the most important of which is the fight against terrorism and the prevention of the return of ISIS terrorist gangs in Iraq and the region, and security and military cooperation with the Iraqi forces.
Sunak's letter to the Prime Minister also confirmed Britain's commitment to working with Iraq in the economic aspects, developing the private sector, and supporting stability within the Iraq Economic Liaison Group, along with the Group of Seven, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, and supporting the Iraqi government in implementing economic reform.
He also affirmed Britain's support for Iraq's efforts in developing investment and switching to environmentally friendly energy, combating the effects of climate change, and continuing regional partnerships for long-term stability in the Middle East.
Economist: Parliament will be in a critical situation because of promises that will burden the budget with 7 trillion dinars
The economic expert, Qais Al-Obaidi, confirmed, on Saturday, that Parliament will face a difficult situation because of promises that will burden the budget with 7 trillion dinars.
Al-Obaidi said in an interview with "The Information", "Iraq is suffering from a very serious crisis represented by the appointment of hundreds of thousands of employees in departments and ministries, which are mainly suffering from unprecedented slack, especially since the appointment has become like a source of livelihood for millions of citizens in light of the collapse of the private sector, agriculture and industry."
He added, "Representatives making promises to appoint, install, and increase salaries, in addition to the file of compulsory conscription, all require a fixed financial cover for decades, which will cover the rights of these people," stressing that "adding everyone means weighing the budget by at least 7 trillion dinars."
He pointed out that "current oil prices may alleviate the problem, but it will be very dangerous if prices collapse, especially since selling oil below $60 represents the beginning of danger in the country because the size of the budget that pays salaries is very high."
Many deputies had made promises and collected signatures to appoint and install hundreds of thousands of civilians in state institutions on the 2023 budget.
Oil: Solving the oil problems with the region during the next six months
The director general of the legal department in the ministry, Laith Abdul-Hussein, said in a press statement that "the problems between Erbil and Baghdad related to oil, are due to the understanding and interpretation of the constitution."
He explained, "Part of the new government's work program is related to the problems between Erbil and Baghdad, expressing his optimism that the problems can be resolved within the coming months."
Abdul Hussein pointed out, "The curriculum of the new government, which was approved by the Parliament on October 27, clearly indicated the importance of resolving the oil disputes between Baghdad and Erbil, explaining that the problems that have been going on for years will be resolved within the next six months."
It is noteworthy that a dispute between Baghdad and Erbil is sweet in the management of the oil and energy file that has been going on for years with the absence of the controversial oil and gas law.
At an important turning point in the dispute, the Federal Supreme Court issued a decision on February 15, describing the Kurdistan Region’s Oil and Gas Law as “unconstitutional,” calling on the regional government to hand over oil revenues to the federal government, a decision rejected by the Kurdistan Regional Government.
The ministerial curriculum paper for the government of Muhammad al-Sudani, which was agreed upon by the political blocs and voted on by the House of Representatives, stipulates that "the legislation of the oil and gas law will be completed within six months."
Al-Sudani announces the start of establishing the Iraqi Development Fund
Prime Minister Muhammad Shia Al-Sudani announced the start of the establishment of the Iraqi Development Fund, while noting that the recovery of the looted Iraqi funds is an essential paragraph in our relations with friendly countries.
Prime Minister Muhammad Shia Al-Sudani stressed, on Saturday, that recovering the looted Iraqi funds is an essential paragraph in our relations with friendly countries.
And the Prime Minister’s media office quoted in a statement, the most important thing that Al-Sudani spoke during his meeting with a number of political analysts, that “we established in the budget law the establishment of the Iraqi Development Fund, and it will be financed by deducting a percentage of oil revenues, and from it specialized funds for housing, education, health and others will be branched.”
Al-Sudani added, "This fund represents a new idea in amending state administration systems, based on activating the private sector and developing capital, and it will eliminate corruption, and provide tens of thousands of job opportunities," noting: "We have included all categories in the Social Security Law, and it encourages Working in the private sector instead of waiting for government appointment, and it includes all categories and all private businesses, no matter how small.
He continued, "People's optimism is a great additional responsibility, and our curriculum is not ideal, but works according to the data, and work depends on political stability," stressing: "We will enter into the prohibited files in order to confront corruption, and we will first start reforming the institutions concerned with fighting corruption."
And he added, "We will address express services, because the root of the problem is the citizen's loss of confidence in the service apparatus or the political system," adding, "We have reached global rates of teachers' availability to schools, but poor distribution hinders the service of the educational process."
He continued, "What concerns us is the next stage, some say that it is the government of the last chance, and in fact there are challenges and there is the ability to succeed. Accurate diagnosis of problems exists and opportunities are at hand," noting that "I must recall the heavy legacy, and know all its details and at all levels." Every day, I meet civil and security officials, who I find seeking help from accumulated big problems."
He pointed out that "there are problems that the governors suffer from, they have not been heard before, and they work alone without a provincial council, and most of their problems are related to routine procedures with the ministries."
He stressed that "the challenges are clear to us, and in light of them we designed the ministerial curriculum. We have a time limit for each path of one, two or three years. The criterion is how to succeed and make a difference at the service and livelihood level," adding: "If we agreed that the constitution is always the cover, The problems between Baghdad and Erbil all have a solution, and I spoke about this matter directly to the officials in the Kurdistan region of Iraq."
And he indicated that "no one can ignore poverty, and this class needs direct treatments, and it cannot wait for reforms and long-term plans. These people must stop everything in order to address their conditions and alleviate their living suffering."
He added that "the engineering effort team has started implementing service projects in neighborhoods in three regions in Baghdad, and the works carried out there are not patchwork, but according to the required specifications, and the same projects will be implemented in other tired neighborhoods in the governorates," noting that "we have more than 1,450 projects sluggish, and caused He left it by costing Iraq huge sums, and it focused on these projects, some of which extend the life of some of them for more than ten years."
In cooperation with the World Bank, movement in the context of poverty alleviation in Iraq
The Ministry of Planning announced, on Saturday, the continuation of its efforts as part of its preparations for the preparation of the third poverty alleviation strategy, for the years 2023-2027.
The ministry said in a statement that Nass received a copy of it (November 12, 2022), that "in this context, the work of the technical workshop for the preparation and preparation of the third strategy has begun, in line with what was stated in the government curriculum."
Sabah Jundi Mansour, Executive Director of the Poverty Reduction Strategy at the Ministry of Planning, said, according to the statement, "This workshop is part of a series of workshops and meetings held in cooperation with the World Bank, for the purpose of reviewing activities and outputs and presenting future visions for formulating the new strategy in light of the changes and circumstances that are going through. Iraq, with guidance from some international experiences and drawing lessons and challenges.
According to the statement, "the adviser to the United Nations organizations, Mahdi Al-Alaq, and the director of the Social Fund for Development in the Ministry of Planning, Naglaa Ali Murad, as well as representatives of the ministries and relevant authorities" participated in the workshop, according to the statement.
NoV 13 22
Reform of the salary payment mechanism system (cash withdrawal machines)
Japanese Prime Minister: We hope that Iraq will witness the necessary reform steps to face challenges
The President of the Republic, Abdul Latif Jamal Rashid, received a message from the Prime Minister of Japan, Fumio Kishida, in which he expressed his hope that, under his presidency, Iraq will witness the necessary reform steps to face challenges.
In a statement, the media office of the President of the Republic said in a statement, a copy of which was received by "Nass" (November 13, 2022), that "the Japanese Prime Minister, in his letter to his country, indicated that his country attaches great importance to its relationship with Iraq, which is the cornerstone of peace and stability in Iraq." The Middle East".
"The two countries celebrated the 80th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations in 2019, and both countries have taken steps to further strengthen ties further since then," Fumio Kishida added.
The Japanese Prime Minister expressed his hope that "under his presidency, Iraq will witness the necessary reform steps to face challenges, stressing Japan's continued support in the field of Iraq's development, and his country's desire to enhance cooperation between the two countries in the broadest fields."
Iraq wants stable energy prices, prime minister says
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Nov 12 (Reuters) - Iraq is keen to maintain stable oil prices at not more than $100 per barrel, Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani told reporters on Saturday.
Iraq, a member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), will have discussions with other members to reconsider and increase its production quota, he added in a briefing.
"Iraq is keen for stability of energy prices, we do not want prices to increase above $100 and neither, at the same time, for them to fall in a way that affects the level of supply and demand," he said.