Independent Kurdistan requires an independent economy

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (K24) - A Kurdish businessman has offered an economic reform plan to tackle the financial crisis in the Kurdistan Region. He has sent his letter to President Barzani.

Mala Yassin Mahmood, a businessman and the Kurdistan Investment Union spokesman talked on the phone with K24. “In my letter to Barzani, I prepared a reform package that consists of several important suggestions and proposals in order to improve the economic and financial situation in the Kurdistan Region.”

Mahmood warns that if President Barzani does not directly intervene, the economic situation in the Kurdistan Region will get worse in the next four months.

According to Mahmood, contractors, traders, and investors— the private sector in general—have suffered from the staggering economy in the Kurdistan Region. “Through proposing reform projects to the governorates and the KRG Council of Ministers, we will try to prevent the collapse of the private sector of in the Kurdistan Region,” Mahmood.

“Due to the financial crisis, the public sector is unable to perform actively. Most of the government projects in various sectors have been suspended for two years. It is not clear when the KRG will be able to resume the works on the 5000 delayed projects,” Mahmood said.

“People of Kurdistan are hopeful in the steps taken towards establishing an independent Kurdistan… without a doubt an independent Kurdistan is in line with an independent economy,” speaking of his letter to Barzani, Mahmood told K24.

On December 21, the Kurdistan Region Government (KRG) Council of Ministers approved eleven decisions to deal with the acute economic crisis in the Kurdistan Region. This was the first stage of implementing reforms to deal with the current crisis. The KRG Prime Minister approved twenty-one more decisions on Sunday as the second phase of the reform package.

“The KRG's reform plans are a good step forward… But these steps only aim at preventing the financial situation from getting worse,” he said.

KRG lost share in the Iraqi federal budget, low oil prices, continuous war against the Islamic State, and the influx of refugees and IDPs to the Kurdistan Region have been the main reasons behind the financial crisis, according to the Kurdistan Region officials.