KRG to launch 'green investment' unit, says top official

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – A new unit to promote green investments in the Kurdistan Region will be inaugurated next week, a top government official told Kurdistan 24 on Wednesday. 

The idea of the new unit was introduced in a meeting in Erbil among Kurdistan Region Investment Board officials, local and international investors, and a delegation of the UN Development Programme (UNDP), led by its chief for Arab states, Abdallah al-Dardari. 

The unit will act as a "coordination center" between the KRG and UNDP and as a section to promote green investments, Mohammad Shukry, the head of the Board, told Kurdistan 24 on Wednesday. 

Planned to be launched next week, the unit is expected to be the first of its kind in the country. 

In a bid to promote foreign direct investment, the Board on Monday launched its investment brand, dubbed Invest Kurdistan, in a ceremony attended by Prime Minister Masrour Barzani, a delegation of the US Chamber of Commerce as well as domestic and international investors.  

The top UN official hailed the investment climate in Kurdistan Region, though adding it requires additional support. 

The Kurdistan Region has a "roadmap and plan for the future", as there has been a number of "good projects" that have been implemented in the Region, al-Dardari told Kurdistan 24. 

He expressed his agency's willingness to support the Kurdish region's investment sector.

The UN agency has implemented a number of renewable energy projects across the Kurdistan Region in recent years.

Last year, a solar-power electricity generation project was inaugurated in Erbil plains for Kurdish farmers that could provide electricity to 40 wells of irrigation 

A two-megawatt solar energy-powered park in Duhok was inaugurated by the UNDP as well last year.