Kurdistan Region succeeds in launching a digital management project to attract investments

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[size=52]Kurdistan Region succeeds in launching a digital management project to attract investments[/size]

[size=45]Translation: Hamed Ahmed[/size]
[size=45]In October, the Kurdistan Regional Government launched a “digital transformation” strategy, according to which the numbering system will be introduced in various areas of the functions of government institutions in the region.[/size]
[size=45]Hiwa Effendi, director of the Information Technology Office in the Kurdistan Regional Government, said that the numbering system will help in bringing investments to the Kurdistan region.[/size]
[size=45]Effendi added, according to a report by (Al-Monitor), “The more I move towards the digital method, the more transparent and efficient it will be and the more visible it will be to potential investors.”[/size]
[size=45]The regional government had already achieved some progress in digital transformation, but some investors say that there are many steps waiting to be activated in this regard, including at the federal level, so that the region can attract more investments, as well as federal Iraq in general.[/size]
[size=45]According to an official document, the strategy of the Kurdistan Regional Government to transition to the digital system is itself an ambitious plan to make government institutions in the region by 2025 among the most digitally dependent in the Middle East.[/size]
[size=45]This means that by this date, the services of all government institutions will be conducted digitally. Tax collection and registration of businesses and commercial companies are among the services that the regional government plans to make digital.[/size]
[size=45]The document also indicates that the KRG also wants to promote the innovative side of this modern technological application.[/size]
[size=45]The two British companies, (Adam Smith International) and (Scottknog), provide support for the implementation of this strategy.[/size]
[size=45]The giant Chinese company (Huawei), which manufactures communications and electronics equipment, also helped organize one of the official events for this project in March.[/size]
[size=45]The Government of the Territory has already made some progress in this area, for example, the opening of an information center, which made the process of renewing market licenses in a digital manner.[/size]
[size=45]Part of the effort of the digital system is to have disclosed information about companies registered in the Kurdistan region.[/size]
[size=45]But according to Director of the Office of Information Technology Effendi, such information is not currently available online.[/size]
[size=45]"When all the information is available, this will make investors feel safe," he added.[/size]
[size=45]Amer Saleh, CEO and founder of the (IQ Cars) website for selling cars in Iraq, describes the regional government's move to shift towards the digital method in completing transactions in government institutions as a positive step.[/size]
[size=45]“Their work will expedite the development of this new technological application,” Saleh told Al-Monitor. The Iraqi federal law that requires companies registered in the country with limited liability to have 51% of the shares or more owned by Iraq is a major obstacle to foreign investment.”[/size]
[size=45]Saleh added, "This frightens foreign investors and keeps them away. New electronic applications need multiple investors, and if they want to grow more in this field, foreign investors will own more than 51% because they invest huge money in projects."[/size]
[size=45]Saleh also pointed out that tax exemptions for several years for companies operating in federal Iraq and the Kurdistan region are not available to implement modern projects, while other countries in the Middle East such as Jordan, Egypt, the UAE and Saudi Arabia have done a lot to support modern projects through tax exemption as a minimum.[/size]
[size=45]For his part, the Iraqi researcher in investment and banking business, Rawaz Raouf, praised the Kurdistan region’s plan for digital transformation and the application of this in the implementation of transactions, but he pointed out that the 51% ownership law impedes investment by foreign companies.[/size]
[size=45]Raouf said, "This condition must be removed. Most companies worldwide serve in several markets and in several countries."[/size]
[size=45]He added, "In order to achieve a digital strategy, we need stable digital payment solutions, even for employees' salaries, they must follow the authorized bank account system and stop paying salaries with cash."[/size]
[size=45]Raouf said that the digital payment system will help stimulate the development of modern innovative technological applications in the Kurdistan region, which include the development of mobile phone applications in the payment process, noting that in certain cases, such as paying the electricity bill, it can be digitized where any citizen in the region can do this Payments on any application of his choice.[/size]
[size=45]Investment researcher Raouf said that the country is now living in a state of stability and security after the completion of the ISIS terrorist gangs page, and this is an opportunity to move forward with the future digital technological orientation and benefit from the capabilities of the new young generation who learned about smart phone technologies with the availability of information, which is a suitable time for this transformation.[/size]
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