Kurdistan Region prime minister welcomes passage of Reform Bill
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani announced that he welcomed new sweeping reforms enacted by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), stressing that it marks "an important milestone" towards delivering improved services to the public.
"I welcome parliament's decision today to pass the Reform Bill into law, marking a historic milestone in our journey towards a stronger Kurdistan," Barzani said in a statement, emphasizing that the action "is central to the government’s plans to increase public trust, streamline public expenditure, and ensure a fair system for our valued public servants and brave Peshmerga forces."
The former KRG cabinet led by Nechirvan Barzani drafted an earlier version of the bill but a regional election fraught with accusations of voter fraud in late 2018 halted progress. Lawmakers and other Kurdish officials resumed working on the initiative when the new regional cabinet was formed in late 2019.
"After forming the cabinet last year, I established a high-level committee, comprising senior cabinet officials across the government, to review and strengthen the draft Reform Bill," Masrour Barzani added.
In December, the KRG approved the final draft of the Reform Bill and sent it to the Kurdistan Region Parliament. On Thursday, lawmakers held a session in which they voted to pass it.
Read More: Kurdistan Region parliament votes to pass landmark Reform Bill
PM Barzani continued, "The final version provides important guarantees for all public sector employees concerning their salaries, pensions and allowances, reinforcing the principle that those who are entitled to public benefits are rewarded and protected appropriately."
Senior KRG officials held a press conference before the parliamentary vote took place, reiterating the importance of the bill and promoting that it would come into effect within the coming two months.
"The Reform Bill provides another clear demonstration of the KRG's commitment to root out corruption," Barzani said, adding "It is also an important milestone on the journey towards making our civil service more modern, transparent and professional, so it delivers better services and benefits to all Kurdistanis."
Editing by John J. Catherine
Hiwa Shilani contributed to this report