Kurdistan Regional Government to implement financial reforms
Prime Minister Barzani focused attention on the Region operating under severe financial constraints, obliging the government to take serious and courageous steps toward increasing income and reducing costs.
He said that reviewing the taxation system, reducing allowances of higher ranking staff, and implementing other financial reforms are steps that must be taken.
Prime Minister Barzani emphasized that, by facing financial challenges, it is necessary for all authorities, communities, and political parties in the Region to accept responsibility and work together in the public interest.
Deputy Prime Minister Qubad Talabani outlined the reasons behind the Region’s financial difficulties – Baghdad funding failures, severe oil price reduction, the war against ISIS, and accommodating and assisting an extraordinary number of internally displaced people from other parts of Iraq who fled and took refuge in Kurdistan. These together with other necessary expenditures including health and education have caused intense pressure on the Region’s finances. He said the Iraq Federal Government is in a similar and even worse financial situation.
Despite urging restructuring of the energy sector, especially electricity, the Council of Ministers made several decisions that will be implemented beginning next year.
Reducing allocations of the Kurdistan Region President, Kurdistan Regional Government Prime Minister, Iraqi Kurdistan Parliament Speaker, their deputies and advisors, as well as the high grade positions in all governmental institutions by 50 to 100 percent is the main decision that has been approved by the Council of Ministers.
The Kurdistan Region Council of Ministers decided to form committees in charge of studying the possibly of restructuring the government’s ministries and other institutions, as well as collecting data and information in order to establish and implement policies that accomplish more while increasing income and lowering costs.
