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Tomorrow ... A New Group "Outside The Authorities" Will Enter The Line Of Discussion And Give Advice On The Budget !


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Deputy: the budget is 96% ready

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5th February, 2021


MP for the Alliance of Saeroun, Riyadh Al-Masoudi, confirmed, on Friday, that the budget is ready for printing and sending by 96%, while indicating that the political solution is no longer useful regarding the share of Kurdistan.

Riyadh Al-Masoudi said in a television interview, "The budget is 96 percent complete and is in the process of closing and printing to be sent to members of Parliament for the purpose of review."

He added that "the ongoing discussions focus on the issue of the proportion of the Kurdistan region, and consultations to add job grades for employees of contracts and education."

Al-Masoudi explained that "there are no conditions against the Kurdistan region, and the political solution is no longer effective," calling on the Kurdistan region to demand the application of the law and the constitution in order to work to restore the rights of Kurdistan employees."

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Al-Karawi: 5 files have not been resolved yet in the
budget law

 
 
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2/4/2021 20:38
 
 
Member of the Parliamentary Regions Committee, MP Mudhar Al-Karawi, confirmed, on Thursday, that the 2021 budget will be decided next week.

Al-Karawi said, "The budget for 2021 was expected to take place this week, but there are 5 important files that have not been resolved so far, including the share of Kurdistan and recent commitments to Baghdad in terms of oil, border crossings and the rest of the other files in addition to the share of southern governorates and the allocations of liberated areas."

Al-Karawi added, “All expectations indicate that the next week will be decisive if new developments arise that lead to waiting, stressing that the parliament is forced to extend its legislative recess again in order to complete the budget file, which we believe will face many complications during the voting stage due to disagreements about points Multiple”.

For several weeks, the Parliamentary Finance Committee has been conducting extensive discussions about the file of the items and chapters of the 2021 budget in order to complete it and present it to the House of Representatives for a vote.
 
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3 hours ago, DinarThug said:

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Al-Karawi: 5 files have not been resolved yet in the
budget law

 
 
image.jpeg.17084f03c2d88db49bb4aafd421964fa.jpeg
 
 

2/4/2021 20:38
 
 
Member of the Parliamentary Regions Committee, MP Mudhar Al-Karawi, confirmed, on Thursday, that the 2021 budget will be decided next week.

Al-Karawi said, "The budget for 2021 was expected to take place this week, but there are 5 important files that have not been resolved so far, including the share of Kurdistan and recent commitments to Baghdad in terms of oil, border crossings and the rest of the other files in addition to the share of southern governorates and the allocations of liberated areas."

Al-Karawi added, “All expectations indicate that the next week will be decisive if new developments arise that lead to waiting, stressing that the parliament is forced to extend its legislative recess again in order to complete the budget file, which we believe will face many complications during the voting stage due to disagreements about points Multiple”.

For several weeks, the Parliamentary Finance Committee has been conducting extensive discussions about the file of the items and chapters of the 2021 budget in order to complete it and present it to the House of Representatives for a vote.
 

And oil law

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Parliament reveals its position on the Finance Committee after comprehensive amendment steps on the 2021 budget

 

2021-02-05

 

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Yes Iraq: Baghdad

 

The Presidency of the House of Representatives confirmed, today, Thursday, the budget for the current year 2021 is very important to address the repercussions of the financial crisis facing Iraq, while denouncing the attack of "dissonant voices" on the Parliamentary Finance Committee.

The presidency said in a statement that it “denounces the attack by cacophony voices against the Parliamentary Finance Committee and the attempt to obstruct its work with the aim of thwarting it and thus failing to pass the budget in the House of Representatives to confuse the work of the government and the state in general in this difficult circumstance that the country is going through.”

 

She explained, "The current year 2021 budget is very important to address the repercussions of the financial crisis facing Iraq on the one hand and those that resulted from the failure to legislate the budget law last year 2020, and the negative effects caused by the Corona pandemic on the health and economic reality." That "the goal of these votes is to thwart the legislative and executive powers and make them appear weak and unable to pass the budget."

 

And the presidency called on the political blocs to "disclose their orientations regarding the budget through their representatives in the Finance Committee."

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The budget law is on the table of the political blocs before it is presented to a vote

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6th February, 2021


The Iraqi Forces Bloc announced, on Saturday, that the vote on the General Budget Law for 2021 will be imminent, noting that the final version of the law will be presented to the political blocs before the voting session.

The deputy head of the bloc, Raad al-Dahlaki, told Shafaq News Agency, "The Parliamentary Finance Committee is in the process of setting the last points of the budget law and is very keen to present the latest version of the law to the political blocs despite the different views on some articles of the law."

He added that "the Finance Committee includes representation of the political blocs and is aware of the amendment taking place in the articles and paragraphs of the budget law. The final version of the law will be considered before voting."

Al-Dahlaki pointed out that "the budget law will be presented to a vote in the coming days, but it has not yet been determined when the vote will be made on the law."

Representatives in the Iraqi parliament announced that the Finance Committee has completed nearly 95% of the articles and items of the current year budget.

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13 hours ago, screwball said:

And oil law


Yo Screwball - Note The Paragraph In Large Purple Font Halfway Down Regarding The Issuing Of Bonds ! :o 

 

:D  :D  :D 

 

 

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British report talking about the budget of Iraq for the current year


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5th February, 2021


It appears that the Iraqi parliament will approve the 2021 budget during the next few days, after the Finance Committee was able to change its form and provisions in a way that differs radically from what the government sent at the end of December 2020, to be of an economic austerity nature and more open to segments Do not work in the public sector.

After dozens of meetings held by the Finance Committee in the Iraqi Council of Representatives with experts, ministers, general directors, governors, representatives of the World Bank, the IMF and donors, the committee decided to stop appointments in the government sector and make them confined to service departments, to finish a file that was used before every parliamentary or local elections to attract voters.

This decision raised the ire of some political blocs that accused the Finance Committee of working for corrupt parties by withholding income tax from employees and transferring them to contractors and company owners to complete their projects. This was evident in the responses of representatives of the State of Law coalition led by former Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, and some of the representatives of the Al-Fateh List, led by Hadi Al-Ameri, to the point that one deputy, Uday Awad, threatened to burn himself if the budget was passed according to the recent amendments.


Reducing the deficit to $ 18 billion

 

Despite these positions, the Finance Committee managed to reduce the budget deficit to $ 18 billion after it was $ 50 billion, and adopted a new price for oil ($ 45), and stopped various allocations to government departments, according to committee member Ahmed Yolk. Al-Saffar added that "the committee made many adjustments to the budget, including raising revenues from 93 to 101 trillion dinars (64 to 69 billion dollars) and reducing expenditures from 164 to 127 trillion dinars (113 to 87 billion dollars)," as well as reducing Treasury bonds from 40 trillion dinars (27.5 billion dollars) to less than 2 trillion dinars (1.3 billion dollars).

 

Al-Saffar explains that "Iraq can dispense with issuing bonds after the rise in oil prices in global markets, and secure financial abundance through the difference between the two global prices and the proposed budget, if prices remain in their current position," suggesting that the budget will be approved in the next two days. 
 

The amendments included reducing the budget of the three presidencies to 20 percent, stopping the disbursement of the sums allocated for conferences, petty cash and hospitality in all ministries, and forcing the Council of Ministers to reassess and negotiate with oil licensing rounds companies and fuel for the Ministry of Electricity.

Regarding the dispute over the proportion of the Kurdistan region in the budget, Al-Saffar explains that "this paragraph has not been resolved until now and negotiations are still continuing."


Illegal amendments

 

Economists believe that what the Finance Committee has done is illegal and is a violation of the government's powers, which are stipulated in the constitution and will have negative repercussions on the Iraqi economy. An economics professor at Basra University, Nabil Al-Marsoumi, says that the Finance Committee violated the constitution and the law and made major amendments to the draft budget sent by the government. He added, "Among the powers of the Finance Committee is to conduct transfers and reduce public expenditures, but it does not have the right to interfere in the details of the budget, which are the prerogatives of the government."$ 17.5, which could lead to an increase in the prices of fuels, especially auto fuel, and consequently an increase in transport costs, goods and services.

Al-Marsoumi believes that the Finance Committee, in its violation of the government's powers, takes advantage of the absence of the Federal Court that examines the appeals, stressing the need to adopt a joint coordination office between Parliament and the Council of Ministers, so that the concerns of the former are taken into account when working on the country's budget. And specialists played down the negative repercussions that could be caused by the amendments to the General Budget Law for various reasons. The head of the Future Foundation for Economic Studies, Manar Al-Obeidi, says that the reduction in the budget is natural, and there may be an agreement between Parliament and the government on that.

Al-Obaidi adds that “Parliament is not authorized to make major amendments, but it seems that there is an agreement with government agencies to change these numbers, instead of returning them to the cabinet again in order to shorten the time,” noting that the government sent a huge budget because it expects to reduce it in this way. 
 

Al-Obaidi suggested that things would be better during the coming period after the rise in oil prices, especially since the International Monetary Fund talks about the price of 54 dollars per barrel that will be good for the Iraqi budget, indicating that "in the future it will be positive, not negative, according to these expectations."  

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Economic: Parliament cannot change oil prices and the dollar in the 2021 budget


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16:05 - 06/02/2021
 
 

An economist, Bassem Antoine, confirmed, on Saturday, that the 2021 budget is moving towards a vote, and Parliament cannot amend the exchange rates of the dollar or sell oil.

Antoine said in a statement to the "information" agency, "It is not within the powers of the House of Representatives to change and amend exchange rates and oil prices, whether the prices are high or low, as these are the exclusive powers of the government."

He added, "After the central bank approved the new exchange rates in agreement with the government, the budget numbers are not subject to amendment and cannot be challenged by Parliament."

In a related context, Antoine emphasized, "The decrease or lack of central bank sales is a reflection of the changes that occurred in the exchange rates of the dollar, which pushed the merchant and the citizen to not risk and engage in new trade in light of the economic transformations of the Iraqi market."

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Iraq : Technical Assistance Report-Guarantees and Extra Budgetary Funds Management

 

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5th February, 2021

 

Electronic Access:

 

Free Download. Use the free Adobe Acrobat Reader to view this PDF file

 

Summary:

 

Iraq is substantially exposed to fiscal risks related to guarantees issued by the State, with a stock of guarantees related to foreign currency service payments and debt of USD 21.7 billion at end-June 2017 and a stock of domestic guarantees that remains to be fully assessed. In 2017, the Council of Ministers approved a set of procedures to tighten controls on the approval of State guarantees. Nevertheless, misreporting cases highlight the need to further strengthen capacities and institutional arrangements to effectively identify and monitor the fiscal implications of guarantees, including in the context of EBFs’ operations.

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Al-Masoudi: We are waiting for agreement on two issues to present the entire budget

 
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09:01 - 06/02/2021
 
 

The MP from the Alliance of Saeroun Riyadh Al-Masoudi revealed, on Saturday, that the Finance Committee has finished 95% of the budget, indicating that the current discussions are summarized in the two issues of Kurdistan and job grades.

Al-Masoudi said in a statement to / the information / that "the political blocs have not set conditions against the Kurdistan region, and a political solution will not work without applying the law and the constitution and working to restore the rights of Kurdistan employees."

He added that "the budget is 96 percent complete and is in the process of closing and printing to be sent to members of the House of Representatives for the purpose of review."

Al-Masoudi pointed out that "the current discussions are focused on the issue of the proportions of the Kurdistan region and consultations by adding job grades to the employees of contracts and education."

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Al-Kazemi stresses the importance of investing high oil prices in the budget copy

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7th February, 2021


The Prime Minister, Mustafa Al-Kazemi, held a meeting today, Sunday, with members of the Parliamentary Finance Committee, during which the federal budget for 2021 was discussed, and the joint cooperation between the executive and legislative authorities was continued, with the aim of expediting its approval.

In a statement conveyed by his media office today, Al-Kazemi said that the financial budget that the government sent earlier is aimed at financial and economic reform and supporting vital sectors, which would address a large part of the problems of the Iraqi economy that it has been suffering from for decades.

He also referred to the importance of investing in the recent increase in oil prices in a way that contributes to reducing the burden on the citizen in the budget copy that is submitted to the vote in Parliament. 

He stressed the need to activate the mechanisms of automation and digital dealing, and also to activate the role of the Federal Service Council, in the course of economic reform.

Al-Kazemi warned, on the necessity of adopting the principle of justice in the distribution of wealth among all regions of Iraq, in accordance with the principles of the constitution, and not to include political disputes in the file of the citizen's sustenance and the level of services provided to him. 
 

And he indicated that the country is currently facing many challenges, and we are working hard to reform the current situation and put the Iraqi economy on the right track.

The government statement noted that it was agreed to intensify the holding of sessions between the executive and legislative branches, to ensure the approval of a reform budget that preserves the rights of the citizen, and as soon as possible, and that the work of the legislative and executive authorities be complementary, and in the spirit of one team, seeking to advance the historical responsibility, to get the country out of the situation Current.

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An agreement to set a date for passing the 2021 budget bill


2021-02-07
 
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Yes Iraq - Baghdad

 

Today, Sunday, an informed parliamentary source said that there has been a preliminary agreement between the political forces to pass the 2021 budget bill next Saturday.

The source stated to Yes Iraq that the political forces agreed in principle to pass the 2021 budget bill next Saturday.

He added, "The agreement came after reaching an agreement and consensus with the Kurdish forces regarding the region's share of the budget during the next two days."

The Presidency of the Council of Representatives announced earlier today that Al-Kazemi attended a meeting of the Parliamentary Finance Committee to discuss the draft budget law.

The council’s media department stated in a statement that “the Finance Committee is discussing the draft 2021 budget law in the presence of the Prime Minister and the ministers of Finance, Planning, Oil, Housing, Reconstruction, Municipalities, Works, and the Secretary General of the Council of Ministers.”

On Sunday, the House of Representatives announced the most prominent contents of the Parliamentary Finance meeting, with Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kazemi, regarding the draft 2021 budget.

"The committee has rewritten the budget strategy according to a comprehensive economic vision, after what came from the government with a financial vision only," said a statement by the council’s media department.

He added, "The committee delivered a copy of the amendments it had made to the government’s budget," noting that "the pressure of expenditures and the maximization of revenues were scientifically studied and came after a meeting with most of the government ministers and the holding of more than 302 hosting of various state institutions."

The statement emphasized that "the meeting dealt with supporting the private sector and taking bold steps to address it and support industrial, agricultural and real estate banks to achieve comprehensive development in these sectors."

He pointed out that "the meeting exchanged views between the legislative and executive authorities to come up with a unified vision that is in the public interest," indicating that "the Finance Committee will directly supervise the implementation of the budget to ensure the implementation of its vision."

The statement pointed out that "the meeting discussed thinking outside the fund and with technical economic dimensions to convert ministries from consumers who burden the public treasury to productive ones."

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The Iraqi economy suffers from a historical deficit in the 2021 budget, and Kurdistan is its most prominent problem


- 17 Hours Elapsed
 

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Researcher Shatha Khalil *

 

The Iraqi economy faces a number of challenges, starting from the significant decline in oil prices to geopolitical tensions and social unrest in the context of poor public services and the lack of progress in combating rampant corruption, which has produced poverty and unemployment for most of the people, and today it faces the repercussions of the dire Corona crisis.

A report by the Institute of International Finance says that last year, Iraq went through the worst rate of contraction since 2003, reaching 11.2%, and the country dealt with two double shocks represented by the drop in oil prices and the spread of the Corona virus, but despite this, the oil GDP is expected to grow 1.6% this year, the non-oil GDP will grow 3.1%.

 

The World Bank says that the Iraqi economy after the passage of nearly two decades

The country remains stuck in a fragile reality, facing increasing political instability, mounting social unrest, and an ever-deepening gap between state and citizen. And in the midst of a number of crises; Including falling oil prices, the Corona pandemic, and recent protests. This is in addition to the accumulation of the effects of weak economic policies, the absence of reforms, and the inability to address corruption.

Iraq has now seen its worst annual GDP growth performance during 2020, and instability, lack of job opportunities, corruption and poor service provision remain among the most important risks surrounding the country's long-term growth.

The factors of low prices and the spread of the epidemic, along with the ongoing political instability in the country, have led to an inflated Iraqi budget deficit to 15.6% of GDP in 2020, and a sharp decrease in its official reserves.


Budget Law and its Problems:

The budget bill for 2021, which was submitted by the Iraqi government to Parliament, contained a historical deficit, which sparked widespread debate about the ability of state resources to keep pace with this huge volume of expected expenditures.

With the change of the Iraqi dinar exchange rate against foreign currencies recently from 1190 dollars per dinar to 1450 dinars per dollar, and the figures in the budget are estimated in Iraqi dinars according to the new exchange rate, where the large gap between the size of expenditures and expected imports is noted.

And that the value of the expected deficit in the budget of Iraq for the year 2021 is more than 50 billion US dollars, and these figures formed a surprise within the financial and economic circles, as they come in a year that is supposed to witness great austerity, due to the decrease in oil revenues and the continuing negative effects of the Corona pandemic on the economy, and the absence Any prospect for prosperity.

The 2021 budget showed how Iraq is almost completely dependent on the proceeds from the sale of oil, as its project plans to sell 3.25 million barrels per day at a price of 42 dollars per barrel, to raise nearly 50 billion dollars within 12 months, this confirms the weakness of the economic policy followed in Iraq, which is based on randomness. And getting lost in decisions if there are decisions for reform.

In order to maximize non-oil imports, the state tended to include in the draft budget the imposition of taxes on the vital work sectors in the country, such as mobile phone companies, which have reached 20% of the sales tax of their packing cards, while every Iraqi who wants to travel to any other country will have to pay about $ 18, or $ 7 if he wants to travel internally.

The draft budget imposes a 10% tax on malls and large markets, as well as on car sales, while the tax rate on spirits and tobacco is 20%.

Only employees who receive less than about $ 300 per month have survived the deductions within the budget law for 2021, as the more the employee’s salary, the greater the monthly deduction.

It seems that the series of budget problems without modifications lead to inherited problems and without radical solutions.

A member of the Finance Committee in the House of Representatives Jamal Cougar said, "There are many observations on the country's general federal budget law for this year," indicating that the draft budget needs major amendments before it is approved.

And that "the task of the Finance Committee will be arduous, and the budget will witness changes in its chapters and paragraphs, so it will take time to complete these amendments," noting that "the budget came at a difficult time in light of attempts to thwart the government and a difficult economic circumstance, in addition to external interventions with attempts to stop the port project." FAO and claims to invest Iraqi gas and pressure to support and revitalize the local product.

Economists add, that the budget is not consistent with the Iraqi financial and economic reality, and contains problems that may cause major crises later if passed in this way.

"The FAO project", which is considered one of the strategic projects, was allocated only 400 billion dinars (about 273 million dollars), which represents 12% of the cost of constructing the port, while large sums were allocated to the ministries for maintenance and commodity requirements. And they see that “the budget ignores the real economic reality of the country, and is in violation of the Financial Management Law for the year 2019, which specifies the budget deficit of 3% of GDP, but the percentage of deficit in this budget of GDP is 24%.

The "proportion of the Kurdistan region" is one of the most prominent problems that are considered difficult issues and will be included in the political bidding section with an absence of balance and a fair distribution of financial resources between ministries, and the same is true for some Sunni provinces.

He explains that “the budgets of Nineveh, Salah al-Din and Anbar amount to 918 billion dinars (about 628 million dollars), and the number of its population is 6 million and 708 thousand, while the budget of another Sunni province, Diyala, is about one trillion dinars (about 684 million dollars) and its population is about one million and 548. alpha.

It is clear that there is misconduct and planning in some ministries, for example, the budget of the Ministry of Agriculture is 310 billion dinars (212 million dollars), while the Sunni endowment budget is 309 billion and the Shiite endowment is 830 billion dinars (about 568 million dollars), which is seven times the budget of the Ministry of Agriculture , While the overall size of the budget is exaggerated.

According to a member of the Finance Committee, the reform paper proposed by the Finance Committee was not observed, but rather it was limited to imposing taxes and deductions without reforms, and who indicated that “the budget law did not address administrative corruption, and was reduced to the issue of multiple salaries and border outlets without setting a time limit for the completion of This matter".

Specialists believe that the budget does not coincide with the economic downturn, low oil prices, the Corona crisis, and the successive crises suffered by the economy, and despite all the exceptional circumstances, the budget remains the second largest budget among Arab countries' budgets and is overwhelmed with expenditures.

The financing of the deficit, according to the budget, will be through internal and external borrowing and the issuance of national bonds, and this will plunge the country into debt and harm the Iraqi economy. They concluded that “the government deliberately sent the budget late to embarrass the parliament, as the value of the Iraqi state’s internal loans amounted to about 80 trillion Iraqi dinars ($ 67.7 billion), while foreign debts amounted to about $ 60 billion, more than half of which were debts recorded during the eighties The last century during the Iran-Iraq war.

The International Monetary Fund stated, that the wheel of economic recovery in Iraq is still going at a slow pace, and reconstruction projects are very limited, after the war has ended, while large current spending reinforces the risks that threaten the Iraqi economy, which puts public funds and central bank reserves on a path that does not Its continuity can be supported. The report, issued in 2019, stressed the importance of combating corruption in order to enhance the effectiveness of public institutions, and to support investment efforts and job creation on the part of the private sector.

In the financial sector, the Fund called on the Iraqi government to create a strong plan to restructure the large public sector banks, and the associated strengthening of banking supervision, which he said had become a necessity to ensure financial stability, and also called for strengthening financial development and inclusion, and setting stronger controls to combat Money laundering and terrorist financing, and strengthening oversight operations, which will help Iraq prevent abuse of the country's financial sector for the purposes of reaping criminal proceeds from money laundering and terrorist financing.

According to analysts, these deductions are a government attempt to force the simple Iraqi citizen to assume heavy responsibilities that he had no hand in the reasons for their existence.

In conclusion, Iraq needs more public investment to repair the infrastructure destroyed by the war and strengthen the provision of basic public services, including electricity.

Current spending needs to be redirected to health, reduce spending on wages and pensions, which account for 65% of total public spending, eliminate rampant corruption, a weak regulatory framework, and a bad business environment, as it continues to impede private sector development, job creation, and increased flows. Foreign direct investment, and the companies ’problem of obtaining credit, access to electricity and trade, and protecting their rights in a framework that encourages them to turn the wheel of investment.

Economic Studies Unit, Rawabet
Center for Research and Strategic Studies

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The Iraqi parliament amends the 2021 budget and reduces the deficit to 18 billion dollars

 

- Two Days Passed

 

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It seems that the Iraqi Council of Representatives will approve the 2021 budget during the next few days, after the Finance Committee was able to change its form and its provisions in a way that differs radically from what the government sent at the end of December 2020, to be of an economic austerity nature and more open to segments that do not work in the sector The year.

After dozens of meetings held by the Finance Committee in the Iraqi Council of Representatives with experts, ministers, general directors, governors, representatives of the World Bank, the IMF, and donors, the committee decided to stop appointments in the government sector and make them confined to service departments, to end a file that was used before every parliamentary or local elections to attract voters.

This decision raised the ire of some political blocs that accused the Finance Committee of working for corrupt parties by withholding income tax from employees and transferring them to contractors and company owners to complete their projects.

This was evident in the responses of representatives of the State of Law coalition led by former Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, and some of the representatives of the Fatah list, led by Hadi al-Amiri, to the point that one deputy, Uday Awad, threatened to burn himself if the budget was passed according to the recent amendments.


Reducing the deficit to 18 billion dollars

Despite these stances, the Finance Committee managed to reduce the budget deficit to 18 billion dollars, after it was 50 billion, and approved a new price for oil (45 dollars), and stopped various allocations to government departments, according to Ahmed Al-Saffar, a member of the committee.

Al-Saffar added that "the committee has made many adjustments to the budget, including raising revenues from 93 to 101 trillion dinars (64 to 69 billion dollars) and reducing expenditures from 164 to 127 trillion dinars (113 to 87 billion dollars)," as well as reducing Treasury bonds from 40 trillion dinars (27.5 billion dollars) to less than 2 trillion dinars (1.3 billion dollars).

Al-Saffar explains that "Iraq can dispense with issuing bonds after the rise in oil prices in global markets, and secure financial abundance through the difference between the two global prices and the proposed budget, if prices remain at their current position," suggesting that the budget will be approved in the next two days.

The amendments included reducing the budget of the three presidencies to 20 percent, stopping the disbursement of the sums allocated for conferences, petty cash, and hospitality in all ministries, and forcing the Council of Ministers to reassess and negotiate with oil licensing rounds companies and fuel for the Ministry of Electricity.

Regarding the dispute over the proportion of the Kurdistan region in the budget, Al-Saffar explains that "this paragraph has not been resolved until now and negotiations are still continuing."


Illegal modifications

Economists believe that what the Finance Committee has done is illegal and is an infringement of the government's powers, which are stipulated in the constitution and will have negative repercussions on the Iraqi economy.

An economics professor at Basra University, Nabil Al-Marsoumi, says that the Finance Committee violated the constitution and the law and made major amendments to the draft budget sent by the government.
He added, "Among the powers of the Finance Committee is to conduct transfers and reduce public expenditures, but it does not have the right to interfere in the details of the budget, which are the prerogatives of the government." "$ 17.5, which may lead to an increase in the prices of fuels, especially auto fuel, and consequently an increase in transport costs, goods and services."

Al-Marsoumi believes that the Finance Committee, in its violation of the government's powers, takes advantage of the absence of the Federal Court that examines the appeals, stressing the need to adopt a joint coordination office between Parliament and the Council of Ministers, so that the concerns of the former are taken into account when working on the country's budget.

Specialists played down the negative repercussions that could be caused by the amendments to the General Budget Law for various reasons.

The head of the Future Foundation for Economic Studies, Manar Al-Obeidi, says that the reduction in the budget is natural, and there may be an agreement between Parliament and the government on that.

Al-Obaidi added that “Parliament is not authorized to make major amendments, but it seems that there is an agreement with government agencies to change these numbers, instead of returning them to the Council of Ministers again in order to shorten the time,” noting that the government sent a huge budget because it expects to reduce it in this way.

Al-Obaidi suggested that things will be better during the coming period after the rise in oil prices, especially since the International Monetary Fund talks about that the price of 54 dollars per barrel will be good for the Iraqi budget, indicating that "in the future it will be positive, not negative, according to these expectations."

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The decision of the Finance Committee reveals that 95% of the federal budget items have changed

 

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8th February, 2021


On Monday, the reporter of the Parliamentary Finance Committee, Ahmed Al-Saffar, revealed the details of the amendments made by his committee regarding the budget, indicating that the changes included 95% of its provisions and the reduction of the budget of the three presidencies.

Al-Saffar said in a press interview, "The Finance Committee in the House of Representatives worked for 560 hours of continuous meetings, during which it received 320 officials of spending units on the amendment of the budget."

He added, "Parliament has succeeded in reducing the difference significantly between the deficit and public spending, as the number reached from 164 trillion dinars to 127, and it continues to reduce, as well as reducing the budget of the three presidencies by about 20%."

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Maybe They Have To Pass It First To See What’s In It ! :o 

 

:D  :D  :D 
 

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Parliamentary Finance: Some ministers voted on the budget without knowing the details

 
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11:55 - 08/02/2021
 

The reporter of the Parliamentary Finance Committee, Ahmed Al-Saffar, revealed, on Monday, the details of the amendments made by his committee regarding the budget, indicating that the changes included 95% of its provisions and reducing the budget of the three presidencies, while noting that some ministers voted on the budget without knowing the details.

Al-Saffar said in a statement to / the information /, that "the Finance Committee in the House of Representatives worked for 560 hours of continuous meetings, during which it received 320 officials of spending units on the amendment of the budget." He added, "Parliament has succeeded in reducing the difference significantly between the deficit and public spending, as the number reached from 164 trillion dinars to 127, and it continues to reduce, as well as reducing the budget of the three presidencies by about 20%."

Al-Saffar clarified that "some ministers informed us that they voted on the budget for their departments without knowing the details of what contracted the budget amendment process and the last of its approval."
 

 

Edited by DinarThug
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Representative economy: The budget awaits political agreement and cannot be passed professionally

 
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13:02 - 02/08/2021
 

Member of the Parliamentary Economic and Investment Committee, Nada Shaker Jawdat, confirmed, Monday, that the draft budget law is awaiting political agreement, noting that the budget has been changed by 80% from what it was.

Jawdat said in a statement to "the information", that "Iraq has disagreed with all countries in preparing its annual budgets because they are not subject to professional standards but rather subject to the political agreement. Therefore, the current year’s budget is waiting for a final political agreement to be passed and it is not possible to pass it professionally." She added that "the arrival of the region’s delegation to Baghdad represents the final end of dialogue with the political forces for the purpose of political consensus to pass the budget bill."

Jawdat clarified that "without approving the laws of investment, Oil and Gas, the general census, and resolving the problem of common areas between the region and the center, the government and parliament will not be able to approve the annual budgets in a professional manner, and the same problems will remain every year." 
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Parliamentary Finance reveals the date for presenting the 2021 budget in Parliament

 
Parliamentary Finance reveals to {Al Furat News} the date for presenting the 2021 budget in Parliament
 
 
02/08/2021 18:13:41
 

The Parliamentary Finance Committee revealed, on Monday, the date for the presentation of the general budget for 2021 to the Iraqi parliament.

Committee member Shirwan Mirza told {Al Furat News} that "it is hoped that the final version of the general budget for 2021 will be presented next Saturday."

Mirza stressed that "next week it will be approved."


And about the region’s share, he said, "We are waiting for the Shiite blocs to express their proposals to discuss and reach a common, applicable, mediating formula."

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8 minutes ago, DinarThug said:

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Representative economy: The budget awaits political agreement and cannot be passed professionally

 
%D9%86%D8%AF%D9%89-%D8%B4%D8%A7%D9%83%D8
 
 
13:02 - 02/08/2021
 

Member of the Parliamentary Economic and Investment Committee, Nada Shaker Jawdat, confirmed, Monday, that the draft budget law is awaiting political agreement, noting that the budget has been changed by 80% from what it was.

Jawdat said in a statement to "the information", that "Iraq has disagreed with all countries in preparing its annual budgets because they are not subject to professional standards but rather subject to the political agreement. Therefore, the current year’s budget is waiting for a final political agreement to be passed and it is not possible to pass it professionally." She added that "the arrival of the region’s delegation to Baghdad represents the final end of dialogue with the political forces for the purpose of political consensus to pass the budget bill."

Jawdat clarified that "without approving the laws of investment, Oil and Gas, the general census, and resolving the problem of common areas between the region and the center, the government and parliament will not be able to approve the annual budgets in a professional manner, and the same problems will remain every year.

That last sentence is really doing a lot of work "and the same problems will remain every year." 

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