Economy

9th Cabinet prioritizes road development in Kurdistan Region

Suleiman added, “We have serious plans to improve the highways between Dohuk and Erbil, Dohuk and Zakho, the road between Dohuk and Mosul, and the roads linking Dohuk to its districts and suburbs.”

Kurdistan 24 Digital Media 2024/05/24 12:03

Redir Suleiman, Deputy Director General of the Roads and Reconstruction Directorate in Dohuk. (Photo: Kurdistan 24)

Kurdistan Road Development projects Dohuk Redir Suleiman 9th Cabinet

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) - The Deputy Director General of the Directorate of Roads and Construction in Dohuk has confirmed the completion of 312 road projects during the period of the ninth government formation, and assured continued efforts to serve citizens.

Redir Suleiman, Deputy Director General of the Roads and Reconstruction Directorate in Dohuk, told Kurdistan 24 on Friday, “We have worked continuously to develop road service projects in border cities, towns, and villages to serve the citizens.”

He highlighted the significant attention given to road projects by the ninth cabinet of the Kurdistan Region.

He explained that improvements to roads between cities, towns, and villages were aimed at encouraging citizens to reconstruct and return to villages.

Suleiman confirmed that 19 projects were implemented in 2020, benefiting 53 villages; 81 projects in 2021, benefiting 220 villages; and 73 projects in 2022 and 2023, benefiting 160 villages.

Focus on Roads by the 9th Cabinet

Since its inception on July 10, 2019, the ninth government formation has emphasized road projects to boost trade, industry, agriculture, and tourism.

Over 600 projects were implemented, with an estimated cost of about three trillion dinars.

Diversifying income sources and focusing on critical sectors was one of the Ninth Council of Ministers’ primary goals. Road infrastructure was considered vital for activating key sectors.

To achieve this, the government took strategic steps to construct new roads, complete unfinished projects, and repair roads damaged by financial crises, the war against ISIS, and climate change.

Implementation and Future Projects

In the past four years, 624 projects were implemented, costing about three trillion dinars. Of these, 418 projects were completed at a cost of one trillion dinars. Work continues on 206 projects with an estimated cost of over 1.892 trillion dinars, at various stages of completion.

Regional Distribution of Projects

- Erbil Governorate: 160 projects completed at 473 billion dinars; 49 projects ongoing at over 615 billion dinars.

- Sulaimani Governorate: 137 projects completed at 202 billion dinars; 55 projects ongoing at 420 billion dinars.

- Dohuk Governorate: 47 projects completed at over 386 billion dinars; 29 projects ongoing at over 405 billion dinars.

- Halabja Governorate: 13 projects completed at 1.761 billion dinars; 12 projects ongoing at over 130 billion dinars.

Projects in Independent Administrations

The government also implemented projects in independent administrations with the same priority:

- Soran Autonomous Administration: 19 projects worth 2 billion dinars; 13 projects ongoing at over 10 billion dinars.

- Raparin Independent Administration: 16 projects worth 30 billion dinars; 22 projects ongoing at over 30 billion dinars.

- Zakho Independent Administration: Four projects worth over 66 billion dinars.

- Garmian Independent Administration: 26 projects worth over 13 billion dinars; 18 projects ongoing at over 207 billion dinars.

Funding and Future Plans

The government utilized funds from the investment budget for roads, the regular investment budget, and 30% of revenues from weighing stations for road projects. Future plans include completing the Erbil-Koya road and the Sulaimani-Kalar highway.