Parliamentary Finance Delegation Visits Kurdistan.. Salaries, Oil and Ports Files on the Table of Ba

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[size=52]Parliamentary Finance Delegation Visits Kurdistan.. Salaries, Oil and Ports Files on the Table of Baghdad and Erbil[/size]

[size=45]In light of the ongoing understandings between Baghdad and Erbil, the head of the Finance Committee, Atwan Al-Atwani, arrived in the Kurdistan Region to discuss several files.
Upon his arrival and during his meeting with the head of the Kurdistan Democratic Party, Masoud Barzani, the head of the Finance Committee, Atwan Al-Atwani, discussed the implementation of the provisions of the Federal General Budget Law, the oil and national wealth file, the settlement of employees’ salaries, border crossings, taxes and customs.
The media office of the head of the Finance Committee stated in a statement that “Atwan Al-Atwani and his delegation met with the head of the Kurdistan Democratic Party, Masoud Barzani, in Erbil. The meeting discussed the overall political and security situation in the country, and ways to resolve the outstanding issues between the central government and the Kurdistan Regional Government, in a way that establishes a new phase of cooperation, coordination and understanding based on respecting the Iraqi constitution.”
Al-Atwani reviewed “the files that the Finance Committee delegation came to discuss with the Kurdistan Regional Government, most notably the implementation of the provisions of the Federal General Budget Law, the oil and national wealth file, the localization of employees’ salaries, border crossings, taxes and customs, and other issues related to the financial aspect.
” He stressed “the Finance Committee’s constant endeavor to find understandings that lead to radical solutions to the outstanding issues between the federal government and the region,” stressing that “deferring the differences does not solve them, but rather increases their complexity.”
Al-Atwani added: “We have sensed in the federal government a real desire to eliminate crises and begin the process of construction and development,” noting that “achieving prosperity for the Iraqi people requires political stability.”
For his part, the head of the Kurdistan Democratic Party welcomed “the Finance Committee delegation, praising its great efforts in legislating laws, monitoring performance, and taking the initiative to end the differences.”
Barzani stressed that "the opportunity exists to legislate the oil and gas law to regulate the distribution of wealth, stressing his sincere desire to resolve the differences between the central government and the region, expressing his support for the Finance Committee's movement in this regard."
The Finance Committee and the Kurdistan Regional Government also discussed the region's revenues and the localization of employees' salaries.
The media office of the head of the parliamentary Finance Committee stated in a statement that "the parliamentary Finance Committee delegation, headed by Engineer Atwan Al-Atwani, met with the Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government, Masrour Barzani, in Erbil; to discuss the files of localizing the salaries of the region's employees, the work of customs and taxes, the automation of the work of border crossings, and the extent of commitment to implementing the provisions of the federal budget for the years (2023-2025), and reaching an understanding on oil contracts with international companies."
He added that "the meeting discussed many financial files related to the region's revenues, government expenditures, and the localization of employees' salaries, and also discussed ways to address the outstanding issues between the central government and the Kurdistan Regional Government, in a serious and in-depth manner and to identify the obstacles with the aim of overcoming them, in accordance with the constitution; To bring viewpoints closer together and to ensure the enhancement of the state’s financial resources.”
He continued, “The meeting stressed the need to establish a new phase of understandings based on rights and duties and achieving justice in the distribution of wealth, especially with regard to the oil export file by finding a common space for understanding on the issue of reviewing current oil contracts with international companies and adapting them legally to be consistent with the Iraqi constitution.”
According to the statement, the head of the parliamentary delegation, Al-Atwani, stressed “the Finance Committee’s constant endeavor and keenness to maximize non-oil revenues and unify the work of revenue outlets to support the state treasury.”[/size]
[size=45]In this regard, Khalil Dosky, a member of the Finance Committee in the Iraqi parliament, said that “the purpose of the visit and meetings is to identify the problems of the two governments and develop mechanisms to solve them.”
He continued: “The salaries of the Kurdistan Regional Government employees must continue to be paid, and there must be no obstacles to implementing the recent agreement between the two governments regarding salaries and the budget.”
The salary crisis began years ago with the escalation of financial and political tensions between Erbil and Baghdad, as the regional government relied on financial transfers from Baghdad in addition to local revenues, especially from oil. However, these transfers were irregular, which led to the accumulation of financial dues and delayed payment of salaries, especially with the decline in oil prices and the increase in government expenditures.
With no clear solutions in the near term, the salary crisis remains one of the major challenges facing the regional government, especially in light of the difficult economic conditions and the decline in available financial resources.
The Ministry of Finance and Economy in the Kurdistan Region announced earlier that it had deposited an amount of approximately 100 billion dinars in financial revenues for non-oil revenues for last May.[/size]
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