Iraq: Prime Minister of Iraq, Mohamed Shia Al Sudani, has recently addressed the nation on a number of topics and reforms during a press conference held on June 24 2023. Prime Minister presented the half-annual report while addressing the key factors of the government program while delivering his address.
The reports have claimed that the press conference was held to update the Iraqi residents and citizens on the number of different government reforms and decisions for the half-annual report.
The Highlights of the press conference were shared on the official social media account of the Media office of Prime Minister Mr Mohamed Shia-Sudani. In addition, the contents mentioned in the half-annual report are mentioned below:
– We present before our people, the public opinion, and the legislative and constitutional oversight authorities a summary of the first half-annual report on the performance and progress of the governmental apparatus of the ministerial program adopted on December 12, 2022.
– The program had had a continuous follow-up from the confirmation session until the last session when this report was approved on June 20 this year. This work was done without a budget, and we worked with available resources in the ministries and governorates according to government powers.
– The focus was on the five priorities of the government program: tackling unemployment, addressing poverty, combating financial and administrative corruption, providing services, and economic reform.
– The priority is to speed up the completion of independent projects that have been hindered for years due to poor management, lack of allocations or corruption. The fifth round of licenses to invest in oil and gas has been launched, and we announced the complete sixth round to invest in gas wealth.
– We have completed about 25 health institutions between a hospital and a speciality centre and about 20 health centres and a clinic.
– We have started a major rehabilitation campaign to maintain a number of hospitals in Baghdad and the governorates, and we have already opened Al-Kadhimia, Ibn Al-Baladi Hospital and the Children’s Hospital after rehabilitation.
– We have completed 414 schools, distributed among several governorates, and directly rehabilitated 300 more school buildings, and work continues to build 2000 schools.
– We have completed the rehabilitation of 170 km of external roads, the rehabilitation of several sections of the highway, and the opening of Al-Yousufiya Road, the 14 km course.
– Operating the Karbala refinery with 140 thousand barrels per day will save Iraq about 3 billion dollars that were going to import oil derivatives and continue with the project of expanding the Shanafi refinery in Aldiwaniya.
– Completion of the Public Communications and Information Corporation’s digital transformation project and the pilot operation of the anti-cyber attacks project.
– Completing the Olympic Port Stadium in Basra and opening it in the Gulf Championship (25).
– In the services file, we started experimenting with service and engineering efforts in unserved areas and areas outside the urban planning of cities in Baghdad and governorates.
– We attempted to complete municipal services, open streets, update the electrical network, and rehabilitate schools in residential neighbourhoods.
– Preparing the basic designs for the new cities and the announcement of 5 cities in Baghdad and the governorates will be available to the middle, low-income, and poor.
– Launching 35 projects to alleviate traffic congestion, including bridges, the development of intersections and squares, and the elimination of project entrances to the capital.
– Live with digital transformation and automate citizens’ transactions in governmental districts to close corruption outlets.
– Launch of the National Strategy for Education 2022- 2031 to correct the course of the Education file.
– We signed a contract with global companies (Siemens and General Electric) for five years of long-term maintenance, saving 30% of the cost.
– Completed 25 secondary stations in the transport sector and 129 secondary stations in the distribution sector.
– Extension of 311 km of feeders (11, 33 KV), and 923 km of electrical transmission lines, contributed to the national electricity production reaching 26 thousand mW.
– We carried out comprehensive maintenance and completed the cooling system for the stations. An additional 700 MW has been saved, including 40 stations throughout Iraq.
– Adding production stations, including Salahuddin station 630 megawatt, completion of 26 executive procedures in the electricity sector, in the compound cycle, transportation projects and completion of maintenance, and in the field of solar energy with Total Company.
– The largest social research campaign was launched to combat poverty, targeting one million families. The number of families researched is 1.4 million, and cash subsidies were delivered to almost 492 thousand families.
– Expanding the salary of the vacant employer and increasing their salaries, with the completion and inclusion of 430 thousand disabled people with salary.
– Launching of (My umbrella) electronic service for classes benefitting from social protection, 150 billion dinars recovered from violators on the protection network.
– Distribution of the food basket to 5.871 million, including protection, five food baskets distributed, and the sixth is distributed among them.
– Including 42 thousand families displaced by social protection and reduction of tuition fees for students involved in social care in government universities for evening studies and private universities.
– Supporting small businesses and launching 100 thousand loans for those involved in social care.
– In the field of dealing with unemployment and providing job opportunities, more than 600 thousand of the campaign for higher certificates, graduates, first ones, contracts, lecturers and daily wages have been justified.
– 65 thousand new workers have been included in the social security sector. We focused on adjusting the foreign employment profile in Iraq through sentence decisions.
– Taking care of small and medium enterprises, launching a pioneering initiative for development and operation aimed at supporting and empowering the student and youth classes, registering more than 180 thousand joint requests, we target 100 thousand of them in quick courses and preparing loans for them.
– Raise the heads of the funds of the banks granted to the loans of managed projects. At the centre of confronting financial and administrative corruption, the formation of the Supreme Committee for Anti-Corruption and the security team supporting the pursuit of major corrupt officials.
– The action is in accordance with constitutional procedures without any effort by officials, as it happened before and left a negative impact on the anti-corruption process.
– We instructed all ministries to review previous large contracts and subject them to financial and legal audits, and we emphasized to the ministers and the minister’s escorts that the managers of offices are not partisan and political parties.
– Contracting with sober global companies for financial audit and achieving (National Anti-Corruption Strategy).
– Make the issue of cooperation in the recovery of wanted people and stolen money the basis of foreign relations. We were able to dismantle and seize a large oil smuggling net, which contained elements of security equipment that were in charge of protecting crude and refined oil transportation lines.
– Applying one window system in registering companies and forming a “specialized review committee for commission review” that all electronic payment companies have access to.
– Monitoring money laundering and financing terrorism and approving a report (National Assessment of Risks of Money Laundering).
– The government of governmental circles, especially those of a service nature, to reduce friction between auditors and state employees and to create a unified treasury account to regulate funds in the state.
– Recovering large amounts of stolen money in the case of theft of tax deposits, and this file is subjected to daily monitoring by the government. In the field of administrative reform, since day one, we have put in place mechanisms to follow up and evaluate general managers, agents and consultants up to the evaluation of ministers.
– Economic reform is one of the governing priorities amid rising spending, and oil continues as the only source of financing the budget, so we have moved towards activating the industry and agriculture sectors.
– We have taken a number of measures to revive the industrial sector, and the investment opportunities available in Iraq in the industrial sector have been announced.
– Continuing work to complete the rehabilitation of the Iron and Steel plant in Basra, one of the strategic projects that will be carried out this year, in addition to working on the completion of industrial cities.
– We witnessed the most successful agricultural season in the history of Iraq, we were able to achieve self-sufficiency, and we surpassed 4.5 million tons of grain marketing.
– We were able to pay farmers’ dues within a period of between 24 and 72 hours of marketing their product.
– We faced fluctuations in the exchange rate of the dollar and the merit that was not fulfilled during previous governments, despite the agreement with the American Federal Bank. More than 85% of our business is run via the electronic platform and meets international standards.
– For the first time, we have applied a comprehensive system for gambling automation with self-efforts. The Iraq Development Fund is acknowledgement in the three-year budget to balance the budget and government priorities.
– Approval of the productive economic diplomacy in Iraq’s relations with the world. Launching the promising (Development Way) project, which will unite all the countries of the region and maintain stability and serve all development projects.
– Continuing to hit the floor of terrorism and performing the banner of security devices against the drug trade. The achievement of the National Strategy for Iraqi Women 2023-2030 and the success of hosting the 25th Gulf Tournament.
