Empowering the Iraqi Economy: Growth Through Strategic Investments and Banking Excellence
Economy News – Baghdad
Cihan University – Duhok held the “Third Annual Economic Forum”, in the presence of Zerfan Abdul Mohsen Asaad, President of the University, and a number of experts, economists, bank managers and academic figures.
The forum was held on the hall of the Research Center, under the theme “Empowering the Iraqi Economy: Growth through Strategic Investments and Banking Excellence.”
The first session began at 11 a.m., which lasted for two hours, was administered by Ahmed Al-Saffar, an academic and a member of the former Iraqi parliament.
The first speaker was Abdul Hussein Al-Anbaki, head of the Economic Advisory Office of the Iraqi Prime Minister, who began his talk about the challenges facing development in Iraq.
Al-Anbaki stressed “the need to address the structural imbalances in the economy, noting that the goals associated with Article (25), which aims to reform the economy through the diversification of sources and support for the private sector have not been achieved.”
Al-Anbaki referred to “the history of the Reconstruction Council and the impact of changes in its allocations on its effectiveness,” proposing the establishment of an independent popular development fund to finance government and private projects with soft loans. He concluded with recommendations for pre-economic administrative reform, a review of the management of oil revenues, the amendment of the exchange rate of the Iraqi dinar, the cancellation of the currency auction, and the legislation of the Public-Private Partnership Law.”
The second speaker, Haval Siddiq Ismail, representative of the Minister of Investment of the Kurdistan Region, and Director General of the Investment Authority in Duhok, who “provided a comprehensive analysis of the investment situation in the region. Provide details of investment projects and sectors that are successful in attracting investment, focusing on challenges, opportunities and government policies that encourage investors. Dr. Hval also highlighted regulatory and bureaucratic hurdles, and provided a realistic assessment of potential difficulties and opportunities. In the end, he provided details about the potential opportunities and government policies pursued by the KRG to facilitate a thriving investment environment.”
The second session began at 1 p.m. and also lasted for two hours, where it was managed by Nawar Al-Saadi, a professor of international economics and director of the research center at Ceyhan University.
The second session began with the speech of Mohammed Al-Najjar, Advisor to the Iraqi Prime Minister for Investment, and Executive Director of the Iraq Fund for Development.
In his speech, Al-Najjar highlighted “the Iraq Fund for Development, which was newly established as an independent body under the Prime Minister. Al-Najjar spoke about the Fund’s role in promoting change and diversification of the Iraqi economy. The fund aims to attract domestic and international investors to participate in the implementation of various projects.”
One notable example discussed by Al-Najjar was “the ongoing project to build 1,950 schools across Iraq. These projects will be delivered to private sector investors and to the Iraqi investor exclusively, with guarantees such as the return of capital after five years. This approach not only encourages domestic investment, but also ensures the effective participation of the private sector in the reconstruction process of Iraq.”
The fund’s strategy focuses on “different stages of investors, from domestic to foreign investors. Emphasizes the involvement of local stakeholders to promote local ownership in development projects, with a focus on delivering projects to the private sector to ensure a return on capital after a certain period.”
Regarding the second speaker, Ahmed Tabaqli, Chief Strategist at the Iraq Fund at the Aswa Development Fund,
He talked about “strategies to attract investments to the Iraq Stock Exchange. Which featured the market a strong performance, with the AFC fund up 110.4% in 2023, making it one of the best in the world.”
Tabaqli explained this performance “by developing new measures by the Central Bank of Iraq, which has accelerated dependence on banking services and promoted growth in the non-oil economy. The market has also been affected by the country’s relative stability, which has created a more stable economic environment and attracted the attention of international investors.”
Tabaqaly also pointed to the role of the market in supporting the development of an effective economy by providing capital for companies, and believes that the development of the Iraq Stock Exchange contributes to enhancing GDP and economic stability in the region.
Then many interactive questions, discussions and inputs were asked by the attendees, and in the end of the forum came out with a set of proposals and recommendations that will be submitted to the concerned authorities.
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