Iraqi Economists Network

World Bank and EU to Help Iraq Strengthen Public Financial Management Oversight & Accountability

The Government of Iraq, the World Bank Group, and the European Union signed today a grant agreement aimed at strengthening the Government of Iraq’s institutions and mechanisms of fiscal accountability and oversight at federal and sub-national levels.

Iraq to Lower Oil Production to Compensate for OPEC Breach

Iraq plans to cut oil output in January and February to make up for breaching its OPEC+ quota last year, according to the state company that markets the nation’s crude. OPEC’s second-biggest producer will pump around 3.6 million barrels daily for the two months, according to Ali Nizar, the deputy head of SOMO...

Cash-Strapped Iraq in Talks With IMF on $6 Billion Loan Package

Iraq is in talks with the International Monetary Fund for a $6 billion loan to prop up its ailing economy, Finance Minister Ali Allawi said in an interview in Baghdad. OPEC’s second-largest producer forecasts a 2021 budget deficit of 71 trillion dinars ($49 billion). Once the spending plan is approved by parliament, Iraq can apply for $2 billion in quick financing from...

Iraqi Kurdish leader calls for redrawing regional borders—and attacks fellow Kurds Suheil, Iraq—A century after Britain and France drew their famous line in the sand, dividing the Middle East into zones of influence, the leader of one of the region’s few oases of stability, Iraqi Kurdistan, says it’s time to replace artificial with “natural” borders according to national ide

Water injection scheme now not expected to be completed before 2020 BAGHDAD—A stalled project aimed at sustaining Iraq’s record oil production has become a symbol of missed opportunities for a country reeling from the fall in crude prices and the war against Islamic State. The government has ramped up production to meet its large payroll and fund the battle against the Sunn

For the past decade the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) had established what ended up being a false sense of financial security. The KRG economy has been chronically dependent on oil revenues, be it coming from Baghdad or through independent oil sales. The pre-2014 economic boom resulted from high oil prices; however the KRG’s economic security was quickly shaken by the