Iraqi Finance Minister: A concrete economic reform takes 5 years

[yota691]

Iraqi Finance Minister: A concrete economic reform takes 5 years

Iraqi Finance Minister, Ali Allawi

 09 September 2020 11:19 AM

Mubasher: The Iraqi Minister of Finance, Ali Allawi, said that it takes 5 years to implement tangible economic reforms by finding new alternatives for revenues, indicating that the total debt amounts to 80% to 90% of the Iraqi national product, which is 160 trillion dinars (134.4). One billion dollars), including the debts of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia amounting to 40 billion dollars, noting that there is no possibility for the Ministry of Finance to calculate the monetary mass in Iraq .

This came during the minister's attendance at the session held by the House of Representatives on Tuesday; To answer a verbal question directed to him by Representative Muhammad Sahib Al-Darraji, member of the Finance Committee, according to the bylaw of the House of Representatives to exercise its oversight role .

MP Muhammad Al-Darraji asked, according to a statement by the House of Representatives, about the government's failure to submit the economic reforms paper within the 60-day period stipulated in the Domestic and Foreign Borrowing Law of 2020 in Article Seven of it, noting that the House of Representatives voted on the law on June 24, 2020.

The Minister of Finance revealed the dates for announcing the financial reform paper, the obstacles that the state faces in light of the current financial crisis, the period that Iraq needs to witness tangible economic reform, and the size of the debt out of GDP.

The Minister of Finance said that the economic reform program needs a long time to present; Because the economic situation in Iraq is going through a critical situation due to the repercussions of previous cumulative economic policies that passed on the Iraqi state since the 1950s in the last century until now, especially the legislation of the law on agricultural reform and the decisions of the socialist package, in addition to the loss of the economic vision that weakened the private sector and made all resources in the hands of Governments.

Allawi added that the current government suffers from a scarcity of funds that forced it to borrow internally and externally, and it cannot implement the presentation of the paper within the period specified by the law voted on.

The minister noted the formation of a specialized team with a cadre of 40 employees working continuously to work on preparing and submitting the required paper despite the current health conditions, explaining that the reasons for delaying its submission are technical and historical, setting the ceiling for the government’s submission of the first negotiable reform paper at the end of this month. The reforms paper is finalized in the middle of next month (October 2020) .

The minister explained that there are 3 types of loans, including commercial that the Iraqi government has shied away from, borrowing from governments and the third by borrowing from international development institutions such as the World Bank and the Arab Fund for the purpose of investment, especially those related to the requirements of improving the electricity sector by activating previous economic agreements with my company. Siemens, General Electric.

Allawi stressed the importance of reconsidering the exchange rate so that the Iraqi economy would enter the circle of competition with the International Monetary Fund’s interest in the issue of the exchange rate, noting that the ministry received an amount of 15 trillion dinars in full to meet the salary needs .

The Minister of Finance indicated that the need to borrow was to support the general budget and fill the financial deficit without giving support to investment projects, explaining that the tendency to borrow from the International Monetary Fund comes because it has certain support programs for countries suffering from financial crises, such as Iraq, with loans for a period of 3 years, provided that Associated with administrative and financial reforms.

Allawi mentioned that the government has opened communication channels with the International Monetary Fund because Iraq has no source for internal borrowing except the Central Bank of Iraq, and the absence of accredited financial markets in Iraq, in addition to the fact that government banking institutions are saturated with debts to the government to finance the financial deficit in budgets and private banks do not have Great financial financing .

[Stabstones]

Stealing the money from people for the decade without any feeling.. 

Edited September 9, 2020 by Stabstones

[JonnyV]

SOLUTION:    RV your currency!!