Iraqi Finance Committee Members Link 2025 Budget Delay to Political Disputes and Election Dynamics
Iraqi lawmakers warn the 2025 budget may not pass due to political disputes and election calculations, with eight months already elapsed. The delay has frozen hundreds of projects as focus shifts to 2026 preparations.
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) – Members of Iraq’s parliamentary Finance Committee have attributed the government’s failure to submit the 2025 budget tables to parliament to political considerations, warning that approval this year appears increasingly unlikely.
Eight months of the 2025 fiscal year have already passed without a ratified budget, leaving the federal government to operate without an approved spending framework. Some lawmakers suggest the delay is tied to the upcoming parliamentary elections, indicating that the budget may not be passed before the year’s end.
According to the Iraqi Prime Minister’s Office, the Ministry of Finance has been instructed to prepare the 2026 budget tables instead of finalizing those for 2025. This move comes amid mounting parliamentary pressure to unify the budget framework, ensure delivery of public services, and implement the government’s program.
The absence of the 2025 budget has already disrupted hundreds of service projects and created risks to public expenditure planning.
Finance Committee member Moeen Kazemi stated that the government’s delay in preparing the 2025 budget constitutes a violation of Law No. 13 of the 2023 budget, which obliges the executive to approve annual budget tables. He noted that the 2025 budget should have been submitted to parliament before the end of 2024.
Another Finance Committee member, Ouday Awad, emphasized that the reason for the delay is political in nature and linked to election management. He also expressed doubt that the 2025 budget will be passed this year.
Meanwhile, Mohammed Jassim Khafaji, a member of parliament’s Legal Committee, pointed to Iraq’s turbulent political environment, asserting that the ratification of the 2025 budget is virtually impossible under current conditions. He described ongoing discussions about preparing the 2026 budget as election propaganda, arguing that drafting the new fiscal plan is the responsibility of the next government and parliament.
Economic expert Humam Shamaa noted that, in an election year, budget tables could expose the scope of expenditures, prompting further delays to conceal irregular spending. He argued that the current postponement is intended to avoid revealing such details.
