Issuing {Treasury Bonds} In Dollars To Finance The {Development Road}, 24 SEPT

Issuing {Treasury Bonds} In Dollars To Finance The {Development Road}

Iraq  09/24/2023    Baghdad: Hoda Al-Azzawi  A number of specialists in the financial and economic fields put forward the idea that Iraqi capital from inside and outside would contribute to building the giant “development road” project, by issuing treasury bonds in dollars, such as if the value of one bond was one hundred dollars or one thousand dollars.

Purchasing these bonds in Iraqi dinars, provided that they are calculated at the official dollar rate (1320 dinars per dollar), and at a remunerative interest rate such as 5 percent, while allowing external capital to purchase these bonds in Iraqi dinars.

Rapporteur of the Parliamentary Finance Committee for the fourth session, Dr. Ahmed Al-Saffar, stated in an interview with “Al-Sabah”: “Issuing treasury bonds in dollars to finance (the development road) is a good proposal and has positive effects on the movement of the existing monetary mass, by withdrawing the hoarded funds outside the banks that...

It is estimated at about 75 percent of the total monetary mass, and it is hoarded by citizens because they do not trust the banking sector, so issuing these bonds will lead to withdrawing that money and introducing a stream of cash circulation.”

He pointed out that “the base for participation in financing the project will expand and the burden on the government will be reduced in terms of funds allocated for this large project.

This will have an impact - albeit indirect - on the exchange rate of the dollar in the market, and thus the amount of demand for the dollar will decrease and the use of the Iraqi dinar will increase.

” The purchase process, and the participation of external capital is beneficial, provided that it is purely Iraqi money and not the result of a foreign partnership.”

Al-Saffar explained, “If the government is able to implement this project; “It will have an economic impact in all agricultural, industrial, commercial and even tourism sectors.”

 For his part, the expert in economic affairs, Dr. Nabil Jaafar Al-Marsoumi, indicated in an interview with “Al-Sabah” that “the (Development Road) project needs very large investments. The first five-year phase needs 17 billion dollars, and therefore we need 3 One and a half billion annually to finance the project.”

He pointed out that “there are difficulties in attracting foreign investments to implement the (development road) due to the challenges that it will face, including logistical and security ones. Therefore, the financing of the first phase must be Iraqi, and when we put the basic foundations in the first phase and through it we can build or pass loads estimated at 3. 5 million containers annually, after which foreign investment can be introduced.”

Al-Marsoumi explained that “internal financing for the project is done in two ways: Either by providing funds through the general budget, which is very difficult, especially since the estimated three-year deficit is 63 trillion dinars annually, or by issuing treasury bonds, which is one of the proposals that must be looked at seriously, especially since it contributes to withdrawing part of the bloc. Cash and reduces the total demand for the dollar, we need new Iraqi financing for (the development path).”

Edited by: Muhammad Al-Ansari   https://alsabaah.iq/84540-.html