Muthanna Amin: The draft budget should reach Parliament this month

POSTED ON2023-01-15 BY SOTALIRAQ

Mushtaq Ramadan 

, a member of the Iraqi Parliament, Muthanna Amin, saw the need for the draft budget for 2023 to reach the Iraqi Parliament in January, in order to discuss it and then vote on it.

It is noteworthy that on the eighth of last December, the second legislative term of the first legislative year of the parliament ended, and it entered a recess that was reduced to only one month.

The Iraqi parliament is awaiting the arrival of the Iraq budget bill for the year 2023 to the parliament hall, and it is likely that disputes will begin after the bill reaches the Finance Committee, due to the disagreement of the political blocs and parties over confirming their demands in the draft state budget law.

In this regard, a member of the Iraqi Parliament for the Kurdistan Islamic Union, Muthanna Amin, said that “without the budget copy being received and discussed, the issue cannot be fully known, but it is assumed that there will be initial consensus in this regard,” explaining that “it is supposed to reach This month is the first version of the budget from the government, and what is being discussed in the media regarding an actual date for sending it to the House of Representatives is all just speculation.

The size of the Iraqi federal general budget for the year 2021 was more than 101 trillion dinars, and the price of oil was estimated at $45 per barrel, but the price of oil has risen to nearly double that price.

It is noteworthy that Iraq did not vote on the 2022 budget, due to differences between the political parties, which followed the parliamentary elections.

The previous fiscal year covered by the General Budget Law ended on December 31, and the Financial Management Law, which requires the disbursement of one twelfth of the actual spending in the previous year, is in effect until the issuance of the new General Budget Law.

As for the Kurdistan Region’s share of the next budget, Representative Muthanna Amin noted that “there are general determinants that govern the issue of the Kurdistan Region’s share in the budget, including the agreement that preceded the formation of the government, the decision of the Federal Court and the treatment of this decision, the circumstances in which the budget will be formulated, and the blocs’ endeavor to Compatibility and approving the budget in a logical manner, and the understandings of the state administration coalition in this regard.

It is noteworthy that the Kurdistan Region’s share of the public financial budget in Iraq for the year 2021 was determined at 11 trillion and 482 billion and 394 million dinars, which included 8 trillion and 161 billion dinars as operating expenses, 3 trillion and 271 billion dinars for investment, and 923 billion and 434 million dinars as ruling expenses.

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Presidents Of The Republic And Ministers Stress The Need To Expedite The Adoption Of The Budget

15/01/2023

1910

Earth News / posing President of the Republic, Abdullatif Gamal Rashid, received on Sunday the Prime Minister, Mohammed Shiaa Al-Sudani. During the meeting, they discussed general developments at the national level and the importance of continuing the implementation of the ministerial program of the government, especially those directly related to the requirements and needs of citizens and in order to provide them with the best
A statement by the Prime Minister received by Earth News said, “In this context, the need to expedite the approval of the general budget was stressed, as the President of the Republic indicated his readiness to approve it as soon as it is received in order to start implementing the practical steps necessary to develop the service reality.”

The Prime Minister briefed the President of the Republic on “the results of his visit to Germany and his meetings with senior officials there, as well as frameworks of cooperation and investment projects with the European side in various sectors, especially in the field of electricity, gas and energy investment and other projects related to infrastructure development.”

The statement continued, “The meeting also discussed the upcoming participation of the President of the Republic in the World Economic Forum in Davos, and Iraq’s efforts to strengthen its relations with its friends in order to promote the country and support investment and the private sector through the enactment of the necessary legislation and the required facilities that facilitate the participation of international companies in the process of construction and reconstruction and benefit from investment partnerships in order to improve the service and living conditions.”

https://earthiq.news/archives/187612

Rashid and Al-Saydi stress the need to expedite the approval of the budget and the president pledges to approve it immediately

• Time : 2023/01/15 21:48:43
• Read : 546 times

  

{Political: Al-Furat News} The President of the Republic, Abdul Latif Jamal Rashid, discussed on Sunday, with Prime Minister Mohamed Shiaa Al-Sudani, general developments at the national level and the importance of continuing the implementation of the ministerial program of the government, especially those directly related to the requirements and needs of citizens and in order to provide them with the

A presidential statement received by {Euphrates News} a copy of it that “the need to expedite the approval of the general budget was stressed, as the President of the Republic indicated his readiness to approve it as soon as it is received in order to start implementing the practical steps necessary to develop the service reality.”

The Prime Minister briefed the President of the Republic “on the results of his visit to Germany and his meetings with senior officials there, as well as frameworks of cooperation and investment projects with the European side in various sectors, especially in the field of electricity, gas investment, energy and other projects related to infrastructure development.”

The statement added, “The meeting also discussed the upcoming participation of the President of the Republic in the World Economic Forum in Davos, and Iraq’s efforts to strengthen its relations with its friends in order to promote the country and support investment and the private sector through the enactment of the necessary legislation and the required facilities that facilitate the participation of international companies in the process of construction and reconstruction and benefit

https://alforatnews.iq/news/رشيد-والسوداني-يؤكدان-على-ضرورة-الإسراع-بإقرار-الموازنة-والرئيس-يتعهد-بالموافقة-عليها-فوراً

US newspaper: Sudani plans to send high-level delegation to Washington this is his mission

• Time : 2023/01/15 19:45:10
• Read : 1,755 times

  

(Political: Al-Furat News) Prime Minister Mohammed Shiaa al-Sudani revealed – citing an American newspaper – that he “plans to send a high-level delegation to Washington for talks with US officials next month” about the future presence of US and international coalition forces in the country.

According to the Wall Street Journal, which interviewed Sudani, the latter “defended the presence of US forces in his country, and did not set a timetable for their withdrawal,” according to the newspaper.
“The need for foreign forces remains, and the elimination of ISIS needs more time,” Sudani was quoted as saying, referring to U.S. and NATO teams that train and assist Iraqi units in the fight against the terrorist organization, but remain largely untouched from actual fighting.
The prime minister added that Iraq “wants that its relations with Washington be similar to those enjoyed by oil and gas producing countries in the region.”
“He does not see it as impossible for Iraq to have good relations with Iran and the United States,” he said.
Prime Minister Mohammed Shiaa al-Sudani said during his visit to Germany on Friday that “Iraq today does not need combat forces, what exists is an advisory team for training and information support,” stressing that “the Iraqi security services of all kinds are capable of deterring terrorism, and have reached a stage of readiness to maintain security throughout the country.”
He pointed out that “the presence of the teams of advisers of the international coalition is currently under review by the security services, to determine professionally and technically the size of training missions, the quality of tasks, and the duration needed by the security forces to be able to develop their capabilities.”

https://alforatnews.iq/news/صحيفة-أمريكية-السوداني-يعتزم-إرسال-وفد-رفيع-المستوى-الى-واشنطن-هذه-مهمته

Central Bank Governor: Dollar Exchange Rate Rising is a Timely Problem and Will Be Overtaken

political| -08-07:21 – 15/01/2023

Baghdad – Mawazine News

Speaker of the House of Representatives Mohammed Halbousi confirmed on Sunday that the Council supports the Central Bank of Iraq in its steps to address the rise in the dollar exchange rate, while the governor of the Central Bank pointed out that the dollar problem is temporary.
Al-Halbousi’s office said in a statement received by Mawazine News / a copy of it, that “the latter received the Governor of the Central Bank Mustafa Ghaleb Shay, in the presence of the heads and vice presidents of the parliamentary finance and economic committees and listened to a detailed explanation of the measures taken by the Central Bank in regulating the economic sector related to the circulation of foreign currency, whether the sale of cash or the financing of foreign trade.”
The Governor of the Central Bank explained what steps the Central Bank has taken and what it will take to overcome this problem, stressing that it is “temporary and will be overcome once the foundations that have been built to address it are established.”
The Speaker of the House of Representatives stressed that “the Council supports the Central Bank of Iraq in its steps to address the rise in the dollar exchange rate, while stressing the need to develop regulatory solutions that address unorganized phenomena in economic activity in general.”
Halabousi called for “an understanding of the challenges facing the Monetary Authority and the need to assign its actions from the concerned authorities in the state.” Finished29/h

https://www.mawazin.net/Details.aspx?jimare=216735

What is the secret of the decline in the Iraqi dinar despite the increase in dollar reserves?

reports

   

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Economy News-Baghdad

The exchange rate of the Iraqi dinar has been witnessing fluctuations against the dollar for about two months, despite the large jump in foreign exchange reserves, which is currently close to 100 billion dollars, thanks to high oil prices.

Experts revealed that the secret behind these fluctuations is that Iraq has begun to comply with international measures on remittances in hard currency, while parties in the country hold Washington responsible for this decline.

While the official exchange rate installed is 1470 dinars against the dollar, the price of the dinar in the market since mid-November has fallen to 1600 dinars over the weekend, before settling at about 1570, according to the official news agency, that is, the Iraqi currency lost about 10 percent of its value

This decline is not huge, but it is starting to worry Iraqis about the rise in the prices of imported materials, such as gas and wheat, for example.

The prime minister’s adviser on finance Mazhar Saleh says in an AFP report that the “fundamental and fundamental reason” for this decline “is an external constraint”

But some Iraqi politicians consider the United States to be behind this volatility.

On the other hand, economist Ahmed Tashishli believes that “contrary to rumors and misinformation, there is no evidence of US pressure on Iraq,” the important economic and trade partner of neighboring Iran.

In fact, the volatility of the dinar is linked to Iraq’s start of compliance with some of the standards of the International Remittance System (SWIFT), which Iraqi banks must apply since mid-November to access Iraq’s dollar reserves located in the United States.

In order for Iraq to access those reserves amounting to $100 billion, it must now comply with systems that “require compliance with global anti-money laundering provisions, anti-terrorist financing provisions, and those related to sanctions, such as those applicable to Iran and Russia,” according to Raqishli.

He adds that this is about Iraq’s entry “within a global remittance system that requires a high degree of transparency,” but this is “shoic cause” for many Iraqi banks “because they are not used to this system.”

Mazhar Saleh explained that Iraqi banks should currently register “they transfers (in dollars) on an electronic platform, checking orders… The U.S. Federal Reserve is examining it and if it has doubts it stops the transfer.”

Since the entry into force of the restrictions, the Federal Reserve has rejected “80 percent of requests” for remittances to Iraqi banks, Saleh said, on the back of doubts about the final destination of those amounts being transferred, he said.

This rejection affected the dollar’s supply in the Iraqi market. On the other hand, demand accumulated, but the supply was inconsistent with it, and therefore the exchange rate fell as bank transfers fell in dollars.

The Central Bank of Iraq spoke in a statement on Tuesday about the return of the exchange rate to what it was within two weeks, describing the “dollar price turmoil” as a “temporary situation.”

In the meantime, the Iraqi authorities have taken measures, including facilitating the financing of private sector trade in dollars through Iraqi banks, and opening outlets for the sale of foreign currency in government banks to the public for travel purposes.

The Council of Ministers also decided to “commit all government agencies to sell all goods and services inside Iraq in dinars and at the price of the Central Bank of (1470) dinars to one dollar.”

Mazhar Saleh believes that “these measures are important because they show that the state exists to protect the market and the citizen,” and help “repel the problem.”

Although the dinar has fallen, inflation remains small, reaching 5.3 at an annual pace in October 2022, according to the Ministry of Planning, but actual concerns relate to the purchasing power of the population.

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Added 2023/01/15 – 11:04 AM

https://economy-news.net/content.php?id=31886

Halabousi as president of the Arab Parliamentary Union

political| ? 05:56 – 15/01/2023

Baghdad – Mawazine News
Speaker of the House of Representatives Mohammed Halbousi chaired the Arab Parliamentary Union.
Halabousi’s office said in a statement received by Muzneuses a copy of it, “Iraq headed the Arab Parliamentary Union, where the presidency of the Union moved to Iraq, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives Mohammed Al-Halbousi was assigned as President of the Union as of January 9.”
The statement added: “From February 23 to February 26, Baghdad will host the work of the 34th Conference of the Arab Inter-Parliamentary Union and the accompanying committees with the participation of the heads of the councils and parliaments of the Arab member states of the Union, in addition to many parliamentary organizations and institutions that have observer status in the Union.” Finished29/h

https://www.mawazin.net/Details.aspx?jimare=216725

Wall Street Journal: Sudanese Supports No Time Cap for US Troop Presence in Iraq

political| ? 03:35 – 15/01/2023

Baghdad – Mawazine News

The American newspaper Wall Street Journal revealed that Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shiaa Al-Sudani did not set a timetable for ending the US presence in Iraq.
“Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed al-Sudani defended the presence of US forces in his country and did not set a timetable for their withdrawal, indicating a less confrontational attitude towards Washington early in his term,” the newspaper said in a report published.
“We think we need foreign troops,” al-Sudani said, referring to U.S. and NATO force units that train and help Iraqi units counter the Islamic State terrorist group, but remain largely out of battle.
“Eradicate ISIS needs more time,” he added.
“I see Iraq on good terms with Iran and the United States,” he said.
He added that President Biden “is different from other presidents in that he knows the situation in Iraq in full.”
Al-Sudani said in the interview at the presidential palace in Baghdad that he plans to send a high-level delegation to Washington for talks with U.S. officials next month, a move aides said they hoped would pave the way for Sudani to meet Biden.
“Inside Iraq we don’t need combat forces,” al-Sudani said, referring to the U.S. role in helping train Iraqi forces and intelligence in hunting down the terrorist organization ISIS, if there is a threat to Iraq, it is to penetrate ISIS terrorist cells through Syria. “Done 29/h

https://www.mawazin.net/Details.aspx?jimare=216707

Masrour Barzani informs his government that preliminary understandings have been reached to solve problems with Baghdad

Kurdistan WomenMasrour BarzaniKurdistan Regional GovernmentThe Federal Government

2023-01-15 07:39Font

Twilight News / The Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Region, Masrour Barzani, informed on Sunday that the members of the Council had reached preliminary understandings to solve problems with the federal government in Baghdad.

This came during the holding of the Council of Ministers of the Kurdistan Region, today, its 100th meeting chaired by the President of the Council, Masrour Barzani, to discuss a number of files included in its agenda, according to an official statement received by Shafaq News Agency.

The statement explained that in the first paragraph of the agenda, the Council discussed the results of the recent visit held by the high-level delegation of the Kurdistan Regional Government headed by the Prime Minister, on January 11, 2023, to Baghdad and the meeting with the Federal Prime Minister and the negotiating delegation of the Federal Government.

The Prime Minister pointed out that during the meeting, they felt that there is a positive atmosphere and a good opportunity to resolve problems with the federal government on the basis of the constitution, and within the framework of the political agreement of the forces that formed the government, and the ministerial platform voted on by the Iraqi Council of Representatives.

The Prime Minister stressed that many relevant files were discussed, including the draft federal budget law of 2023, the draft federal oil and gas law, the rights and constitutional entitlements of the Peshmerga, the implementation of constitutional article 140, the normalization of the situation in the Kurdish areas outside the administration of the region, the implementation of the Sinjar Agreement, the removal of illegal militias and

According to the statement, the second paragraph of the meeting was devoted to presenting the report of the Ministry of Natural Resources on the provision of white oil and the latest developments regarding the agreement between the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Federal Ministry of Oil during the visit of the high government delegation headed by the Prime Minister to Baghdad on January 11, on the implementation of the agreement on sending white oil to the region

In the third paragraph of the agenda, the statement says that the Coordinator of International Recommendations Dindar Zebari reported on the latest steps and progress in the mechanism for implementing the Kurdistan Regional Human Rights Plan for the first year.

The Prime Minister praised the Coordinator of the international recommendations for the preparation of the report, as well as affirmed the commitment of the Kurdistan Regional Government to respect and protect human rights, consolidate and promote democratic principles and peaceful coexistence among the various components of the Kurdistan Region, as stipulated in the work program of the Ninth Ministerial Group.

The statement noted that the Council of Ministers approved the report submitted unanimously, after discussions and deliberations.

https://shafaq.com/ar/كوردســتانيات/مسرور-بارزاني-يبلغ-حكومته-التوصل-لى-تفاهمات-مبد-ية-لحل-المشاكل-مع-بغداد

Central Bank: Only banks capable of performing their functions remain in the banking sector

money and business

   

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Economy News – Baghdad

The Central Bank of Iraq explained on Sunday its procedures to monitor the performance of private banks and improve their work, while noting that only banks capable of performing their functions remain in the banking sector.

“The Central Bank of Iraq has begun three years ago with procedures to complete reform procedures in the banking sector,” the adviser to the bank said, Ihsan al-Yasiri, pointing out that “the private banking sector is one of the promising sectors in Iraq, as the Central Bank attaches great importance to it like the government banking sector.”

Al-Yasiri added that “the Central Bank does not distinguish between the private and public sectors, but the private banking sector is one of the engines of development in Iraq, in addition to the government sector,” noting that “the private banking sector has a role in spreading the funds of the Central Bank of Iraq’s initiative in lending to various sectors (residential, agricultural, industrial,

He pointed out that “some banks suffer from a set of problems, and the central bank in turn is currently taking several measures for the purpose of enabling them to stability and reassure the public of their performance,” stressing that “there are other banks that are doing well and playing excellent roles.”

He pointed out that “the Central Bank, and its confidence in some private banks, has initiated measures to encourage foreign banks and foreign central banks for the purpose of opening financial corridors for them, to enable them to practice money transfers for the purposes of foreign trade.”

He stressed that “the Central Bank usually supports every bank that tries to improve performance and services provided to the public, as a result, the private banking sector is an important part of the Iraqi banking sector, and the Central Bank attaches great importance, and encourages it to improve performance.”

He pointed out that “the public’s confidence in the private banking sector and the banking sector in general is gradually increasing gradually with the strength of the Central Bank’s procedures and control,” according to the official news agency.

He added that “the private banking sector and the initiative funds are currently financing the development of projects, the establishment of new projects and the employment of the unemployed,” stressing that “some banks are trying to reach satisfactory levels.”

He noted that “the Central Bank is currently monitoring the performance of some banks and supervising their performance, and only valid banks capable of performing their functions remain in the banking sector.”

https://economy-news.net/content.php?id=31895