Kurdistan Region has a population of 14% but a 12% budget

Kurdistan 12:18 PM - 2023-03-10

Kurdistan Region, Iraq

Without a general census, the Kurdistan Region's portion of the Iraqi budget was decreased from 17% to 12.6%. Using the most recent statistics available, the Iraqi Ministry of Planning estimates that the region has a population of 14%.

The Kurdistan Region will not receive its fair share

The Kurdistan Regional Government's (KRG) agreement to receive 12.6% of the Iraqi budget in 2023 has received criticism from a PUK MP as a strategic mistake. "The population of the Kurdistan Region is estimated to represent 14% of Iraq, and it should receive its fair share of the budget," she stated.

A member of the Iraqi Parliament's Finance Committee, Narmin Maruf, told PUKMEDIA: “According to the most recent estimates of the Kurdistan Region's population compiled by the Iraqi Ministry of Planning at the end of 2022, the region accounts for 14%, so 14% of the nation's budget, it should receive.”

The region's share is reduced

With the fall of the Ba'ath dictatorship and the establishment of the first federal Iraqi government, it was determined, following a political agreement and the insistence of the Kurdish forces, that the Kurdistan Region would account for 17% of the overall Iraqi budget, until a proper census is conducted in Iraq, including the Kurdistan Region. However, the census has not been conducted, and the region's share has been reduced.

Maruf further said: "If the KRG has agreed to take 12.6% of the Iraqi budget for 2023, it has made a strategic mistake because the region's population is larger than that, according to estimations from the Iraqi Ministry of Planning, and the KRG must not neglect this fact."

She declared: "The Kurdistan Region's citizens have a claim to more than 14% of the Iraqi budget, which, in my opinion, is more than that and cannot be overlooked."

Finance Minister: We have agreed on the budget

The Finance Minister stated, "We have reached an agreement on the share of the budget of the Kurdistan Region, and the final provisions of the articles are complete by both sides with the knowledge and supervision of the prime ministers of Iraq and the Kurdistan Region.

Awat Janab Nuri, the Kurdistan Region's Minister of Finance and Economy, stated that "we have demonstrated the greatest flexibility and reached an agreement on the budget within the parameters of the KRG's determination to clear out the issues with Baghdad, and both parties have finished the final drafting of the sections."

"We hope that the budget bill for 2023 will be submitted to parliament as soon as possible for approval," he added.

The region has stopped pressing for its fair share

According to an economist, the Kurdistan Region's absence from the Iraqi budget stems from the region's unfavorable internal position. He claims that the region was much stronger in the past and that the amount assigned to it "is an agreement, not a right to obtain the full budget," he says.

University professor and economics specialist Omed Qaradaghi told PUKMEDIA: "The Kurds were more united on national issues and all of their rights in the past since they held a more powerful position in Iraq and even within the Kurdistan Region." 

The amount designated for the Kurdistan Region's portion "reflects the political balance between the Iraqi government and the Kurdistan Region, not the full Kurdish share in the budget," he said.

Qaradaghi said: "The KRG has agreed to a share of 12.6% of the Iraqi budget due to the adverse circumstances in the Kurdistan Region. But in reality, the Kurds have the right to demand their full share."

After the referendum, the region's share decreased

Tensions between the KRG and Haider al-Abadi's cabinet grew following the KRG's independent oil sales policy, particularly after the Kurdistan Region referendum in 2017. The Kurdish portion decreased to 12.6% in 2018 and has remained there ever since. According to Kurdish representatives, the KRG should not be satisfied with this amount and should be entitled to 14% of the budget.

Planning Ministry: Kurdistan Region makes up 14% of Iraq's population

In early 2023, the Iraqi Ministry of Planning released its most recent estimates, which put the country's population at 42,248.883. The Kurdistan Region accounts for 14% of its population (5,884,023).

 

PUKMEDIA