Politics

KRG delegation to visit Baghdad for salaries, budget talks

The expected visit comes as the government spokesperson on Saturday criticized Baghdad for the delay in the transfer of the Region’s financial entitlements.

Kurdistan 24 2023/10/29 11:13

KRG ministers and top officials during a meeting in Baghdad, Dec. 13, 2022. (Photo: KRG)

Kurdistan KRG Baghdad Budget

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – A senior Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) delegation is due to visit Baghdad on Monday to continue talks on budgetary issues with the federal government, as Erbil is concerned with the delay in budget transfers, a source told Kurdistan 24.

The delegation will be headed by KRG Minister of Finance and Economy Awat Sheikh Janab, the source, who wished to stay anonymous due to media regulations, told Kurdistan 24 on Sunday.

The expected visit comes as the government spokesperson on Saturday criticized Baghdad for the delay in the transfer of the Region’s financial entitlements that have been paid by Baghdad in the form of loans in order for Erbil to be able to pay its civil servants.

The 700 billion IQD ($538 million) is supposed to be transferred monthly to the Kurdistan Region per an agreement between the two governments.

Prime Minister Masrour Barzani on Saturday said the rights of the Region’s teachers could no longer be violated, particularly after Erbil had presented Baghdad with “detailed data” about its payroll.

The Iraqi Council of Ministers is set to convene on Tuesday and is expected to make a decision regarding the Kurdistan Region’s salaries for the remaining months of the year.

Although the Kurdish region has transferred the agreed-upon amount, Baghdad has paid far less than what it had initially committed itself to, according to KRG officials.

Since its adoption in early June, KRG diplomats have alleged the budget has not been implemented properly by the government. Instead of paying the Kurdish share, they allege Baghdad has released allowances to Erbil in order to cover public salaries. The KRG has previously said the 500 billion dinars (over $384 million) provided by Baghdad thus far is not sufficient to pay the salaries.

Hailed as one of the country’s biggest budgets, the state expenditures were set at 198.91 trillion Iraqi dinars ($153 billion), with a deficit of more than 64 trillion dinars (over $48 billion).

The Kurdistan Region’s share in the federal budget is set at 12.67 percent, amounting to more than $12 billion annually.

The management of oil and gas has been among the thorny issues between Erbil and Baghdad for over a decade, leading to the suspension of the Region’s share in previous federal budgets.