Iraqi government marks two years: PM highlights 62% project completion and economic gains

Shafaq News/ On Tuesday, Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani confirmed that his government has achieved 62% of its project targets across various sectors over the past two years, a 6% increase in non-oil revenues, and a 17.6% decrease in poverty rates.

During a cabinet meeting marking the second anniversary of the government, Al-Sudani stated that "the overall achievement rate of government targets across various fields has reached 62%. We succeeded in several key areas, faced challenges in others, and experienced delays in some details and files."

Al-Sudani pointed out that the Iraqi government conducted multiple assessments of its progress over the last two years, and released three reports detailing the implementation of the government program. The achievements extended beyond a single sector, city, or province, encompassing various districts and urban centers.

Al-Sudani's media office quoted the PM saying that "a dedicated service and engineering team focused on delivering rapid services and addressed stalled projects, some dating back to 2005, through cabinet decisions."

Al-Sudani indicated that there were 1,471 delayed projects, and work resumed on 555 projects for the ministries, reducing the number of stalled projects to 916. Additionally, work resumed on 442 contracts and projects at the provincial level, with ongoing projects totaling 8,934.

"We focused on infrastructure projects, wastewater treatment plants, networks, and providing drinking water. As of yesterday, we have included new projects due to population growth," he explained.

Regarding road and bridge projects, he revealed that “the traffic congestion relief project was one of the most significant initiatives in Baghdad, which had not seen a bridge since 1996, despite the expansion. Last year, we initiated road and bridge projects related to mass visits, serving millions of visitors, leading to a decrease in traffic accidents.”

However, he acknowledged delays in providing some services, such as the water desalination project in Basra and the necessary services at Iraqi airports, which remain below the required standards, adding that "we were delayed in preparing residential land allocations; it was our commitment to start distributing 500,000 residential plots, as land issues are complex and hinder housing projects."

In healthcare, he said, "We opened new hospitals, specialized centers, and health clinics, and rehabilitated a significant number of hospitals and health centers."

In electricity, he revealed achieving the highest power production, reaching 27,000 megawatts, and initiating new projects, opening those to alleviate network congestion, including those related to combined cycle and new feeders. "We have taken an important step in solar energy, with 15 projects underway, totaling a capacity of 5,720 megawatts," he proceeded.

On housing, Al-Sudani announced important residential cities that will provide housing units with all necessary services. He also mentioned advancements in school building projects, including some stalled initiatives, confirming that schools in all provinces had also been rehabilitated and restored and that the Iraqi-Chinese agreement projects will conclude this year.

He pointed out that a project for the "Iraq Development Fund" aims to address the need for schools through a new vision related to service purchasing. Additionally, the national education strategy for 2022–2031, the "Study in Iraq” project, and a scholarship program for studies at prestigious universities were launched.

In poverty alleviation, 962,000 families were included in social protection programs, representing an 85% increase, which means 7.6 million individuals are now covered.

The Iraqi PM announced, "We distributed 130 million monthly food baskets since the formation of the government over two years" and activated student grants, school nutrition, and tuition fees for beneficiaries, individuals with disabilities, and children with diabetes, adding that government measures helped reduce the poverty rate in Iraq from 23% to 17.6%.

In addressing unemployment, he mentioned that the government tackled inherited issues by hiring hundreds of thousands of graduates with higher degrees and launched the "Riyada" initiative for employment. These measures contributed to a reduction in the unemployment rate from 16.5% to 14.4%.

Regarding anti-corruption efforts, Al-Sudani declared that the government has implemented multiple levels of institutional reform and adopted a new philosophy for recovering funds and apprehending wanted individuals, achieving significant results in this area.

On economic and financial reform, he pointed out that “the government has developed structural reforms steps to that all state institutions have contributed,” indicating that “total inflation has been reduced from 4.9% in 2022 to 3% in 2024.”

He continued, “We achieved an increase in non-oil revenues by 6%, and raised tax revenues for 2024 by an increase of 23%,” adding that “the amounts collected from electronic payment reached 7.6 trillion dinars (approximately $5.8 million) after it was in January 2023 not exceeding 2.4 trillion dinars (approximately $1.8 million).”

He described the establishment of the "Iraq Development Fund" as one of the most significant reforms outlined in the budget law, representing a new vision to support the private sector.

"We initiated efforts to localize the pharmaceutical industry, opening several projects and increasing local coverage of medicine needs to 35%, up from 10%, with plans to reach 85% within three years," he announced.

Al-Sudani acknowledged the challenges faced in border crossings despite reforms and implementation of network integration, stating that revenues have not yet reached the desired level, especially in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

He admitted, "We have fallen behind in advancing the tourism sector, failing to invest in our religious, historical, archaeological, and natural sites, despite their importance in supporting the national economy."

He mentioned achieving self-sufficiency in strategic crops, emphasizing the need for further efforts to implement an agricultural vision based on available water resources.

Al-Sudani announced, “Decisions have been made to establish a national mobile phone company, with international partnerships underway to bring added revenue for the state.”

He noted that in the sports sector, significant percentages of completed stadiums are essential for athletes, adding that " We announced the Development Road Project and signed a four-party memorandum of understanding with Qatar, UAE, and Türkiye, with ongoing work toward completion."

He stated that they are working concurrently with specialized companies on the design for the rehabilitation of existing railways, which will serve as a secondary project until the development road project is built.

He announced the projects for the " Karbala–Najaf Railway Project" and "Baghdad Metro Project," stating that negotiations with relevant authorities and consultancy firms are ongoing.

The Iraqi MP highlighted that the water management project with Turkey is one of the key strategic projects that will ensure sustainability in the agricultural sector.

Al-Sudani reported significant progress has been made on the Al-Faw Grand Port projects, including berths, the immersed tunnel, the navigation channel, the container yard, and the connecting road.

He declared, "We reached an agreement with international coalition countries to conclude their mission according to a declared timeframe."

He stated that they managed to pass a resolution in the UN Security Council concerning the UN mission in Iraq.

According to the media office, the PM said, "We continue to face financial challenges while ensuring liquidity and prioritizing spending as we shift to a program-based budget aligned with the ministerial agenda," adding, "We aim to increase revenue, rationalize spending, and digitize financial and customs transactions. All financial transactions are being subjected to compliance and governance standards."

The statement continued, "Outdated legislation no longer aligns with current needs, hindering progress in construction, investment, and services," warning that "Regional conflicts have direct impacts on Iraq’s security and economy."

Al-Sudani revealed that "We are preparing for a government reshuffle based on performance metrics, not as a political stance against any bloc or party, but to enhance effectiveness to meet the needs of the stage and the citizens’ expectations."

The Iraqi PM concluded, "We have completed the long-awaited provincial council elections," mentioning the population census as one of the significant obligations that await the government.