Failure to Approve Federal Budget Impedes Government Programs, says Iraqi Prime Minister

Shafaq News/Iraq's Prime Minister, Mohammad Shia al-Sudani on Sunday said that the delayed approval of the federal budget impeded the implementation of his government's program.

The statement was made during an extraordinary session al-Sudani chaired to discuss the semi-annual report on the evaluation of the government program executed by different ministries and non-affiliated entities.

The premier underscored the vitality of the government's program, which serves as a tangible translation of the ministerial platform and has been ratified by the Council of Ministers.

Al-Sudani commended the efforts of his ministers, officials, and contributors who made strides in implementing their ministries' programs, including the governmental program team who have employed scientific mechanisms for evaluation.

"The governmental team was formed on November 8, and it has conducted 518 correspondences, 85 meetings, and 12 training workshops."

The prime minister acknowledged the challenges that ministries face in executing the program, with the absence of a budget posing a notable obstacle.

The lack of a budget deprives the operations of a legal framework, and the necessary financial allocations to undertake projects and programs integral to the government's agenda, he said.

Al-Sudani highlighted the importance of data transmission and liaison with the team, as the details presented in Sunday's meeting are a culmination of the efforts of the previous period.

Prime Minister al-Sudani indicated that there were subsidiary teams within the ministries involved in shaping the program from the inception of each ministry.

"The government's commitment to its program is an important part of its credibility before the people and their representatives in Parliament," al-Sudani stated.

The statesman stressed the need for structural reforms across all ministries in a manner that supports the execution of priorities and urged the ministers to prioritize supporting the private sector to yield results that bolster the executive program of the ministries and effect a significant change in performance.

Despite the lack of a budget, al-Sudani expressed his appreciation for the challenges the ministries faced in the past six months. He asserted that the report, comprising all the data sent by the ministries, will be submitted to the parliament and subsequently disclosed to the public.

"The aim is not merely to affirm a high degree of accomplishment, but rather to establish an accurate percentage of achievement because this will contribute to establishing the required credibility between the government and the people," al-Sudani said.

"A decision was issued by the Council of Ministers to approve the government program on December 12, 2022. The team committed to preparing the semi-annual report on time in June 2023," Sudani revealed.

He further directed the update of data and urged the follow-up team to complete the report. He noted, "We will draft a summary for the final report to be approved in a later session next week."

Al-Sudani emphasized that past errors, "We will declare what has been actually achieved, even if the achievement is 50%, we will write it as it is. The important thing is that the percentage reflects what has been accomplished during the past six months."