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Shafaq News
19 hours ago
- Business
- Shafaq News
Ex-finance official: Erbil must lead talks with Baghdad on financial dispute
Shafaq News/ A high-level delegation from the Kurdistan Region must visit Baghdad to resolve the growing financial dispute, former Deputy Minister of Finance Fadhil Nabi stated on Tuesday. 'The resolution of financial issues between Erbil and Baghdad requires an official visit by the Region's Supreme Committee, including top policymakers and a technical team,' he stated. Nabi added that recent rulings by the Federal Supreme Court on financial arrangements between Iraq and the Region had been 'misunderstood in their implementation,' noting that the latest State Administration Coalition meeting in Baghdad failed to produce any concrete solution. 'These meetings often end by deferring back to the court's decisions,' he said. Tensions between Erbil and Baghdad have escalated sharply following the Iraqi Ministry of Finance's decision to halt salary disbursements for the Kurdistan Region's May 2025 payroll. The ministry cited the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG)'s alleged failure to remit both oil and non-oil revenues to the federal treasury and exceeding its budget allocation. In response, the KRG accused Baghdad of breaching its obligations, labeling the move as ' politically motivated' and harmful to over 1.2 million public sector employees in the Region. The standoff comes despite a February ruling by the Federal Court obligating Baghdad to pay KRG public salaries directly. The court's decision followed months of delayed payments and mounting public frustration in the Kurdistan Region.
Rudaw Net
25-02-2025
- Business
- Rudaw Net
Kurdistan Region's share of federal budget to increase: Officials
A+ A- ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Kurdistan Region's share of the federal budget from Iraq is expected to increase after the 2024 census confirmed its population makes up 15 percent of the country, officials said Monday, though adjustments will not take effect until next year. Iraq's planning ministry revealed that the Kurdistan Region's population stands at 6,503,000 out of Iraq's total 46,118,793, making up 15 percent of the population. This is expected to impact the Kurdistan Region's budget share in the coming years. "They must give us 15 percent of the Iraqi budget, one of the priorities of the census; it will resolve that issue,' Sirwan Mohammed, undersecretary of the Kurdistan Regional Government's (KRG) planning ministry, told Rudaw on Monday. He added that this year's budget share will remain unchanged, with adjustments expected in the following year when the federal budget law is discussed. Fadhil Nabi, former Iraqi finance ministry undersecretary, told Rudaw that the Kurdistan Region should claim its budget share according to the new census results when drafting the 2025 budget. If Iraq's budget remains similar to recent years, the Region's share should increase by approximately 2.5 trillion dinars (around $1.67 billion). In June 2023, Iraq passed its highly contentious budget bill for 2023, 2024, and 2025, setting the Kurdistan Region's share at 12.6 percent based on earlier population estimates, even though it was contested. The 2024 federal budget was nearly 212 trillion dinars (around $141 billion), with the Kurdistan Region's share - based on the 12.6 percent estimate - reaching nearly 21 trillion dinars (around $14 billion), including both consumption and investment expenditures. The 12.6 percent share is calculated after deducting Iraq's sovereign expenditures, which cover defense, foreign affairs, and other nationwide costs. As a result, the Kurdistan Region's allocation is drawn from the remaining budget rather than the total 212 trillion dinars, reducing the actual percentage received. Mohammed noted that the population figure is not final, as it does not include internally displaced persons (IDPs) in disputed areas such as Nineveh province, even though they are under the Kurdistan Region's administration. On Sunday, the KRG announced it had reached an agreement with the Iraqi government to restart oil exports from the Kurdistan Region through the Iraq-Turkey pipeline, which has been suspended since March 2023. On the same day, Mohammed Khudair, Iraq's oil ministry undersecretary, told Iraqi state media that available oil export quantities from the Kurdistan Region stand at 300,000 barrels per day, with 185,000 allocated for export and the rest designated for domestic consumption. The resumption of oil exports is expected to boost Iraq's budget, which in turn could contribute to an increase in the Kurdistan Region's funds. Nahro Mohammed contributed to this report.
