Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani told a meeting of Iraqi expatriates in Houston, Texas, that the investment opportunities in Iraq are valued at around $400 billion.
“Iraq is a country full of opportunities,” he said, emphasising that Iraq is now focused on reconstruction and development. “Ongoing efforts may not always be fully visible outside the country. However, the nation is experiencing significant economic and social progress,” he added.
He noted that Iraq has regained its stability and is progressing confidently in the right direction, particularly after the victory of Iraqis united against ISIS terrorism, which brought together all sectors of Iraqi society and led the country toward stability and development.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan announced on Sunday that his country will sign 20 agreements with Iraq in the presence of Sudanese Prime Minister Mohammad Shiaa and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
“Our goal is to develop relations with Iraq so that regional stability, prosperity and development are possible in order to institutionalize our relations and do what we can to develop order and prosper in the region,” Fidan said in a press conference quoted by Turkey’s Yeni Shafaq.
“Iraq and Turkey have long been ongoing business related to the fields of security, energy, agriculture, water, agriculture, health and education,” he added.
Fidan continued: “We have completed the initial agreements to sign more than 20 agreements during our president’s visit to Baghdad,” pointing out that “the Turkish president will go to Baghdad and Erbil on Monday.”
He explained that “Erdogan will meet with Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani in Baghdad where he will hold a working meeting,” noting that “the agreements will be signed after that.”
Shafaq News/ Iraq’s new labor and retirement law will take in effect in May, a lawmaker revealed on Sunday, saying it also benefits private sector workers and freelancers.
“Effective May 1st, 2024, the law will provide social security coverage and retirement benefits to employees in companies, factories, and even freelancers who choose to opt-in,” said Lawmaker Amir al-Maamouri, a member of the parliament’s labor committee.
“The government will contribute to the retirement fund alongside employee deductions, offering benefits potentially exceeding those available in the public sector,” he said. “This expansion of social safety nets aims to improve working conditions and provide financial security for a broader segment of the Iraqi workforce.”
On December 3, 2023, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani announced that the Labor and Social Security Law for workers in the private sector will be put into action after the parliament votes on it in May, in a step described by the government as essential within the economic reforms it has promised and to ensure the rights of workers in this sector.
The meeting was also attended by the Regional Director of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Webeek Shloimer
Yıldız Taşdelen Erli, Beraa Göktürk |21.04.2024 – Updated: 21.04.2024
Istanbul
Istanbul/Anatolia
Turkey’s central bank governor Fatih Karaha Han met on Saturday with officials from the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) in Washington.
The meeting was attended by the World Bank Country Director in Turkey, Umberto López, and the World Bank Vice President for Europe and Central Asia Anna Perdi.
The meeting was also attended by the IFC Regional Director in charge of Turkey and Central Asia and Webep Shloymer, and Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Turkey Khadija Garahan.
It did not recommend details on the content of the Turkish central bank governor’s meeting with World Bank and IFC officials.
The U.S. International Development Finance Company (DFC) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) have signed a $50 million loan agreement for the National Bank of Iraq (NBI), with the aim of expanding access to funding for entrepreneurs.
Prime Minister Mohammed Shiaa Al-Sudani witnessed the signing ceremony of the agreement on the sidelines of the meeting of the Iraqi-American Supreme Coordinating Committee in Washington.
This loan, which was attended by the signing ceremony of the CEO of the American International Development Finance Company, Scott Nathan, and the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Bank of Iraq, Bassem Khalil Salem, is the first loan submitted by the US International Development Finance Company to a commercial bank in Iraq.
Following the signing of the agreement, Al-Salem said, “We are proud to be the first commercial bank in Iraq to sign a loan agreement from the United States International Development Finance Company and the United States Agency for International Development, and we see this partnership as an important step and a unique opportunity to support economic and investment growth in Iraq by enhancing the potential of entrepreneurs and increasing their access to the necessary funding to support their projects.”
Al-Salem thanked Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shiaa Al-Sudani and international financial institutions for their continuous support to entrepreneurs and small and medium-sized companies, stressing the commitment of the National Bank of Iraq to achieve the common vision of the two sides to progress and prosperity in the country, pointing out that this agreement will be a strong incentive to achieve these goals.
The CEO of the US International Development Finance Company, Scott Nathan, affirmed the company’s commitment to unleash Iraq’s economic potential and empower its private sector by providing meaningful financial support for small projects, and said that “this announcement is an important step in the progress of our efforts, this investment will contribute to increasing the access of borrowers and entrepreneurs for the first time to financing across Iraq.”
For her part, USAID Iraq Director of the USAID Mission in Iraq, Elice Jensen, said, “Access to finance is the key driver in the innovation process, economic growth and job creation, so USAID support will enable private banks to overcome liquidity challenges and offer affordable business loans for small projects. Through our partnership with the National Bank of Iraq and the American International Development Finance Company, we will help create a more robust, diverse and inclusive private sector in Iraq.”
In turn, the Commissioner’s Director of the National Bank of Iraq, Ayman Abu Dheim, said, “The commitment of the Iraqi government to creating an environment conducive to growth, and the strategic focus of the Prime Minister and His Excellency the Governor of the Central Bank of Iraq on empowering small and medium enterprises, is a major focus in our reaching this important achievement. We are confident that this cooperation will support the creation of a more inclusive and dynamic economy in Iraq.”
This loan is expected to contribute to increasing the access of Iraqi small businesses to financing through Iraq’s largest private sector bank. This initiative will prioritize borrowers for the first time and will allocate funding for projects owned by women, and the increase in the number of small projects in Iraq.
In addition to the financing, USAID provided advisory services during the preparation of the project, to facilitate loan negotiations between the National Bank of Iraq and the US International Development Finance Company and accelerate the completion of the transaction, while the US International Development Finance Company is the official lender.
{Economic: Al-Furat News} The US Energy Information Administration announced on Sunday that Iraq’s oil exports to America have increased over the past week.
“The average U.S. imports of crude oil last week from 8 major countries amounted to 4.832 million barrels per day, down 265,000 barrels per day from the previous week, which amounted to 5.097 million barrels per day,” the administration said in a schedule.
She added that “Iraq’s oil exports to America came in second place after Canada, where they reached 308 thousand barrels per day last week, up by 166,000 barrels per day from the previous week, which amounted to 142,000 barrels per day.”
The administration also pointed out that “America’s most oil revenues during the past week came from Canada at a rate of 3.458 million barrels per day, followed by Colombia with an average of 246,000 barrels per day, and from Saudi Arabia at a rate of 229,000 barrels per day.”
According to the table, “the amount of US imports of crude oil, from Mexico was at a rate of 208,000 barrels per day, from Brazil at a rate of 189,000 barrels per day, from Nigeria at a rate of 173,000 barrels per day, and from Libya at a rate of 21,000 barrels per day.”
It also did not import any amount of Ecuador and Russia.
Shafaq News / Informider sources said, on Sunday, that dozens of memorandums of understanding will be signed in various aspects between Baghdad and Ankara during the visit of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan scheduled for Monday to Iraq.
During Erdogan’s official visit to Baghdad, which will begin tomorrow, the sources told Shafaq News, the signing of about 37 multi-faceted memorandums of understanding.
She added that one of the most important memos is the strategic framework memorandum for cooperation between the two countries, of which five committees and two agencies: security, water, economic, energy and transport branches.
The Iraqi ambassador to Ankara, Majid Al-Lajmawi, confirmed, on Saturday, that the visit of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Baghdad will contribute to resolving the outstanding files between the two neighboring countries, and will witness the signing of a strategic framework agreement.
Turkey’s defense minister Yashar Güler announced last Wednesday that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will conduct an official visit to Iraq tomorrow, Monday, his first since 2011.
Earlier, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had confirmed that the water issue would be one of the most important items of his agenda during his visit to Iraq, while hinted at a visit to Erbil after Baghdad.
Erdogan pointed out that Turkey is considering requests made by the Iraqi side regarding water, stressing that they will seek to solve this problem with them, arguing: “They want us to solve it and our steps will be in this direction, and there are also issues related to the flow of natural gas and oil to Turkey, and we will seek to address it as well.”
Search 4 Dinar 