Iraqi Kurds’ Economy in Crisis as Refugee Cost Grows, Bank Says
Iraq’s Kurdish region is facing an economic and humanitarian crisis as refugees fleeing Islamic State and war in neighboring Syria seek refuge in the territory, the World Bank said.
The Kurdistan regional government will need at least $1.4 billion in assistance to stabilize the economy after growth slowed from 8 percent in 2013 to 3 percent last year, and poverty doubled, the bank said in a statement accompanying a report released today.
“This estimate could get much higher depending on how long the crisis persists,” the bank said of the assessment, which was prepared in cooperation with the regional administration.
Iraqi Kurds have had to fend off Islamic State advances on territory under their control after the jihadist group captured large swaths of Iraq last year. Suicide bombers this month attacked the oil hub of Kirkuk, threatening the region’s economic lifeline. Trade, public-investment projects and transportation have been disrupted and foreign investment has fallen, according to the World Bank.
Large numbers of Syrian refugees and Iraqis forced from their homes by fighting have entered the semi-autonomous region, increasing its population by 28 percent. Prices and unemployment have gone up, with newcomers driving down wages, the World Bank said.
While the Kurdish government has allocated significant resources, “it cannot address this big-scale humanitarian crisis on its own,” Ali Sindi, Kurdistan’s minister of planning, said in a statement accompanying the report.
Bloomberg
