Pursuing Reform: Q&A With Iraq’s Central Bank Governor Ali Muhsen Al-Allaq
October 10, 2024
The governor of the Central Bank of Iraq, Ali Muhsen al-Allaq, speaks to Global Finance about the main challenges and top priorities for the bank.
Global Finance: Iraq went through decades of wars and crises. How did that impact the Iraqi banking sector?
Ali Muhsen al-Allaq: The banking sector faced severe headwinds starting with the Iraq-Iran war of 1980-1988, which damaged the country’s financial stability and the banks’ ability to service internal debt. With the 1990’s crisis and the Kuwait war, the dinar’s value then collapsed on the parallel market. That created a major challenge for banks in settling deposits and loans, ultimately undermining public confidence in the banking system.
More recently, the fall of the former regime coupled with terrorism, the war against the Islamic State, and ongoing security and political unrest directly impact banks’ ability to attract savings. In times of uncertainty, particularly during displacement in war-torn areas, individuals tend to hold onto cash.
On the other hand, Iraq’s isolation from the rest of the world, starting in the 1990s, resulted in a large technological gap. This is particularly true of state-owned banks, which inherited problems from previous decades. They find themselves unable to keep up with the recent challenge of building a solid private sector to help diversify the economy.
GF: What is the top priority for the Central Bank of Iraq currently?
Al-Allaq: Our primary objective is to maintain price stability while also promoting sustainable development. The CBI is continuously trying to balance its economic responsibilities in light of the inflationary waves currently impacting the global economy, which have a severe impact on the cost of living for low- and middle-income households. Given Iraq’s reliance on imports, the CBI works hard to stabilize prices by controlling liquidity levels. The central bank also supports economic growth by financing projects that stimulate local production and reduce imports. Finally, the CBI also drives banking sector reform and promotes financial inclusion through electronic payments to deepen the overall level of banking services in Iraq.
GF: What are the main challenges facing the central bank?
Al-Allaq: Iraq’s delay in keeping pace with technology, due to prolonged security and political crises, has made banking sector reform a top priority for us. Because reform takes time, we have set the stability of exchange rates as a first, and very challenging, intermediate goal. The ongoing crises have eroded public confidence in the banking sector, reducing the impact of action on interest rates on the real economy—a crucial tool for all central banks, especially during inflationary periods.
Additionally, the low level of financial depth, the prevalence of an unregulated small and midsize enterprise [SME] network and the heavy reliance on the oil sector exacerbate structural imbalances. That makes our country vulnerable to external shocks, leading to increased budget deficits and rising internal public debt, all of which further weaken the impact of monetary policies on the real economy
GF: The Iraqi banking sector is under international scrutiny, with concerns that some countries sanctioned by the United States access US dollars through Iraq. How do you combat fraud and money laundering?
Al-Allaq: The central bank is striving to strengthen Iraqi lenders through various measures including intensified controls, procedures and inspections targeting banking and non-banking financial institutions, and the establishment of an AML/CFT and a compliance office in Baghdad. To ensure a high level of compliance with global regulatory standards, we also contract with specialized international companies to pre-audit foreign transfers, restrict the delivery of US dollars to travelers at Iraqi airports and conduct enhanced internal processes regarding all transactions in foreign currencies.
GF: How can the Central Bank of Iraq help diversify Iraq’s economy?
Al-Allaq: One of our primary goals is to promote sustainable development by supporting bank liquidity and directing it toward private sector projects. In 2015, the CBI launched two key initiatives: the One Trillion Initiative to finance small and midsize enterprises through commercial banks, and the Five Trillion Initiative to fund large projects via specialized banks. These efforts have expanded to include a one trillion dinar [$770 million] initiative for renewable energy, aimed at addressing our country’s electricity challenges and climate concerns.
These initiatives are designed to develop the non-oil sector and drive economic diversification. As a result, non-oil GDP grew by 4.4%, reaching 87.7 trillion dinars in 2023, driven by growth in manufacturing, construction, trade and services. Additionally, the central bank’s National Strategy for Bank Lending has further supported economic diversification by organizing funding for private sector projects link