KTFA:

Clare:  The Central Bank announces the participation of Iraqi banks in external transfers in multiple currencies

August 30, 2024

 The delegation of the Central Bank of Iraq in New York announced the start of the new phase of foreign transfer operations with the participation of (13) Iraqi banks, in an important step aimed at enhancing the diversity of currencies and facilitating international transfer operations.

 This announcement came after reaching an agreement on the mechanisms for regulating these operations, as it will include dealing in the euro, Chinese yuan, Indian rupee, and UAE dirham.

The delegation confirmed the definition of the scope of work of the international auditing company E&Y, which will review the transfer operations to ensure their safety and compliance with international standards. This step is a reflection of the Central Bank of Iraq's commitment to achieving the highest levels of transparency and security in all foreign transfer operations, and enhancing confidence in the Iraqi financial system.

This initiative came within the framework of the Central Bank of Iraq's ongoing efforts to support economic growth and expand the horizons of international cooperation with global markets.

Central Bank of Iraq 
Media Office 
August 30, 2024

https://cbi.iq/news/view/2659

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Clare:   Central Bank announces results of New York meetings

8/30/2024   Baghdad - WAA 

The Central Bank of Iraq announced, today, Friday, the results of the visit of the delegation headed by the Governor of the Central Bank, Ali Mohsen Al-Alaq, to ​​the United States of America, which lasted from August 26 to 29, 2024. 

The Central Bank of Iraq confirmed in a statement received by the Iraqi News Agency (INA) that "a high-level negotiating delegation headed by Governor Ali Mohsen Al-Alaq held a series of intensive meetings in New York City, USA, which included discussions with the US Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve Bank, in addition to meetings with a group of companies (Visa, Mastercard and MoneyGram) as well as banks (Citi Bank and JP Morgan) as well as international auditing firms (KPMG, E&Y, K2i and Oliver Wyman)."

He added that "the participants in the meetings praised the major transformations achieved by the Central Bank of Iraq, which represent an unprecedented achievement at the country level, as the bank has achieved remarkable progress in monitoring procedures for foreign transfers and cash sales of the US dollar, which has led to improving systems, policies and procedures in accordance with international and local standards, enhancing transparency in covering foreign trade and providing protection for the banking and financial sector from the risks of money laundering, terrorist financing and financial crimes."

He announced, "A meeting will be held between officials of the Central Bank of Iraq and its international partners by the end of this year regarding the major shift in ending the work of the electronic platform for foreign transfers and replacing it with direct banking relations between Iraqi banks and the network of international correspondent banks, according to the plan set by this bank, and implemented internationally

Which will allow the Central Bank of Iraq and the Federal Reserve Bank to exercise their supervisory roles away from executive procedures, as this shift will have important repercussions on the stability, fluidity and transparency of the country's foreign trade financing operations," noting that "it aims to achieve the required stability in exchange rates, which in turn will lead to enhancing the efficiency of the financial system in Iraq."

He pointed out that "the meetings in New York City also addressed the mechanisms for expanding the network of international correspondent banks and qualifying Iraqi banks to meet the necessary requirements to open their accounts with international correspondent banks; with the aim of enabling them to complete their financial transactions, whether through external transfers in US dollars or other foreign currencies."  LINK

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Clare:  Turkish-Iraqi-Qatari-Emirati ministerial meeting on the development road project

8/30/2024

Istanbul hosted the first ministerial meeting between Turkey, Iraq, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates on Thursday to discuss the Development Road Project.

The meeting, which was held at Dolmabahce Palace, was attended by Turkish Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Oraloğlu and his Iraqi counterpart Razzaq Muhibs Al-Saadawi, while Qatar and the UAE participated via video conference.

In his speech after the meeting, the Turkish Minister of Transport said: The project will directly contribute to strengthening the global trade system and the development of the participating countries.

Oraloğlu stressed that the main feature of the modern economy is that multinational production, international financial flows and international trade volume have reached very high levels.

Commenting on the Quadrilateral Ministerial Meeting, Oraloğlu said: "Our meeting today is not only for the future of the transportation and logistics sectors but also for the economic, social and cultural future of our countries."

He added: "It is very important for all of us to have safe and fast transportation facilities to establish the economic cooperation that is indispensable for our countries." He stressed that the existing cooperation between the four countries will be stronger thanks to the Development Road Project.

The Turkish minister explained that the development road project is important in terms of gains and supply chains, and that it will benefit the countries of the region as a whole.

For his part, Minister of Transport Razzaq Muhaibis Al-Saadawi said that the project will contribute positively to the global economy as a whole.

He added: "Today's meeting was fruitful and good in terms of standards, and we discussed many issues related to project management and its stages. We are working to remove the obstacles that prevent the implementation of this project."

He continued by saying: "We must know that the development road project will make a great contribution to all participating countries, to the region and to the global economy as well."

On April 22, Turkey, Iraq, Qatar and the UAE signed a quadripartite memorandum of understanding for cooperation on the "Development Road" project in Baghdad, under the auspices of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani.

The "Development Road" project is a land and railway road extending from Iraq to Turkey and its ports, with a length of 1,200 kilometers inside Iraq, and aims to transport goods between Europe and the Gulf countries.  LINK

Clare:  Text of Cabinet session decisions including setting date for start of new school year

8/30/2024

Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani chaired the thirty-fifth regular session of the Council of Ministers today, Thursday, which witnessed the discussion of the overall situation in the country, the progress of implementing the government program, in addition to the files on the agenda for which the necessary decisions were taken.

At the beginning of the session, Al-Sudani reviewed the outcome of his official visit to Egypt and Tunisia, and the discussions he held on bilateral cooperation files, and the preparations for holding the next meeting of the Iraqi-Egyptian Joint Committee, which will be held in Baghdad. Al-Sudani directed the ministers to prepare the files required to activate all areas of cooperation, especially in the fields of oil and transportation.

Regarding Iraqi-Tunisian relations, the Prime Minister spoke about the convergence of positions between the two countries, the availability of opportunities for cooperation and the activation and revitalization of relations, in addition to the necessity for all ministries to follow up on the outcomes of this official visit and communicate with counterpart ministries in Tunisia and Egypt for more fruitful partnerships.

Al-Sudani renewed his appreciation and gratitude for the efforts of all ministries, institutions, governorates and security forces, most notably the Supreme Security Committee headed by the Minister of Interior, the Supreme Committee for Million-Pilgrimage headed by the Director of the Prime Minister's Office, and the Ministers of Health, Electricity, and Transportation, the governors and holy shrines, for their efforts in managing and making the million-pilgrimage a success to commemorate the Arbaeen of Imam Hussein, peace be upon him.

He pointed out that this success in managing and accommodating more than 21 million visitors, in addition to the projects and infrastructure that have been diagnosed and monitored, are now in the process of being implemented to serve visitors, the roads and stations they use, and all service facilities.

 His Excellency explained the most important security steps taken recently, which contributed to thwarting any threat, and within qualitative preemptive operations that resulted in the arrest of 46 wanted terrorists, and within all operational sectors.

The Council considered the issues and files on the agenda and took the necessary decisions regarding them.

In the oil field, and within the framework of the government’s approach to developing investment in oil wealth, the Council approved the contracts for the fifth and sixth supplementary licensing rounds, totaling (14) projects for final signing, and the commencement of activating the contracts under discussion, based on the provisions of Article (39/1) of the contract for the two aforementioned rounds. 

In the field of energy, the Council approved the addition of (1,463) billion dinars, within the import of fuel, Iranian gas, and (619.68) billion dinars, within the import of electrical energy, to the Ministry of Electricity’s budget for the year 2024, based on the provisions of the Federal General Budget Law for the fiscal years (2023 - 2024 - 2025).

As part of the follow-up of service efforts, the Prime Minister directed the Ministry of Finance to transfer an amount of (14.6) billion dinars to the Baghdad Municipality for the direct implementation of the joint sewer network to serve the district (859, District 3/10), within the Rashid Municipality sector, south of Baghdad, and the transmission line towards the (Al-Dawanem/2) station to serve the district (488) of the Al-Salamyat area within the Al-Shaala Municipality sector.

In the context of determining the calendar for the academic year in the Ministry of Education, the Council of Ministers decided that Sunday, September 15, 2024, would be the date for the commencement of teaching and educational staff for all Iraqi schools, and that Sunday, September 22, 2024, would be the date for the start of the new academic year, 2024-2025.

The Council approved the exemption of the project to build a number of schools within the (Aidopa) program, which will be contracted for design, construction and maintenance according to a contract concluded between the Iraq Development Fund and the Ministry of Education, and any annexes to that contract in the various Iraqi governorates not organized into a region, from the contracting methods stipulated in the instructions for implementing government contracts (2 of 2014) and the conditions of the specialized standard documents issued by the Ministry of Planning.

The Council also authorized the Ministry of Education to purchase the property of the Iraqi school in Tunisia, as an exception to the instructions and regulations of the Central Education Fund, and its ownership would be owned by the Ministry of Education, with its financing and the authority to pay its debts from the Central Education Fund, as well as to form a joint committee from the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Education regarding Iraqi schools abroad, and to submit its recommendations to the Council of Ministers.

Within the framework of developing educational staff, the Council approved amending Paragraph (5) of Cabinet Resolution (319 of 2022) regarding study leaves outside Iraq to include support for a scholarship program concerned with developing the staff of the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research and ministries and entities not affiliated with a ministry, to fill the shortage in the number of teaching and functional staff who are referred to retirement, by allocating the necessary funds in the next budget, in a way that guarantees the Higher Committee for Education Development in Iraq (Educational Initiative) in the Office of the Prime Minister, sending study missions based on the provisions of the Scholarships, Fellowships and Financial Aid System (3 of 2018), in coordination with the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research.

As part of the Cabinet’s follow-up to develop agricultural activity, the non-oil economy, and employ modern irrigation methods, the Council approved authorizing the Ministry of Agriculture to negotiate prices, technical specifications, and quantities, through the coordination committee formed with the Ministry of Industry and Minerals, to contract with the General Company for the Manufacture of Cars and Equipment, to equip modern irrigation systems of various types, from the support amounts amounting to (147 billion dinars), and at a support rate of (30%), as an exception to the contracting methods stipulated in the instructions for implementing government contracts (2 of 2014) and the instructions for facilitating the implementation of the Federal General Budget Law for the fiscal years (2023-2024-2025).

In the context of encouraging national industries and protecting local products, the Council approved that the customs duties imposed on chicken cuts and products be (25%), which were previously not included in the local product protection procedures, based on Cabinet Resolution (23154 of 2023), while maintaining the customs duties on frozen whole chicken at (25%) based on Cabinet Resolution (183 of 2022). This decision shall be implemented after (60) working days from the date of its issuance, by all border crossings, including those in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

The Council approved the authorization of the Minister of Finance to sign the financing loan agreement for the irrigation technology project for the benefit of the Ministry of Agriculture, received from ERST BANK, with a guarantee from the Austrian Export Guarantee Agency (OeKB), based on the Federal General Budget Law for the fiscal years (2023 - 2024 - 2025), and to approve the financing terms.

In the field of the Cabinet’s follow-up of efforts to develop agricultural aviation capabilities, the Council approved the cancellation of Cabinet Resolution (50 of 2020) and Paragraph 2 of Cabinet Resolution (23327 of 2023), and that the Ministry of Agriculture take the necessary measures to implement the following:

1- Direct invitations to no less than 3 international companies or centers specialized in aircraft maintenance; in order to conduct maintenance inside Iraq and prepare the required materials for the stopped agricultural aircraft and return them to work, as an exception to the instructions for implementing government contracts (2 of 2014), and the controls attached thereto, and the instructions for facilitating the implementation of the effective budget, in coordination with the Iraqi Civil Aviation Authority.

2- Qualifying pilots and technicians who are still in service to enable them to work on these aircraft, in accordance with the applicable aviation instructions.

3- Obtaining the required operating licenses for aircraft and their personnel from the Iraqi Civil Aviation Authority.

4- Completing the procedures of the lawsuits filed by the Ministry of Agriculture against the companies that supplied the French Eurocopter aircraft.

In continuation of the government’s approach to completing stalled and suspended projects, and removing the causes of procrastination, the Council of Ministers approved the following:

1. Increase the total cost and reserve amount for the contract (implementation of the bridged intersections and the surface layer of the approaches to the Hindiya Bridge).

2. Increase the total cost of my two projects (improving and developing electricity networks with equipping and installing transformers for different areas in the Tar area, equipping a specialized and service mechanism (lighting crane), equipping and installing transformers with a capacity of (400 and 250) kVA and specialized mechanisms with the construction of a D.W network/Karmat Bani Saeed District).

3. Increase the total cost and reserve amount for the contract (establishing the digital library for the contract (6/2012).

4. Creating a component (remaining work for the project to establish the Drug Research and Control Center).

5. Increase the cost of the main project (establishing and rehabilitating health centers and hospitals in Karbala Governorate/Center District, Hindiyah, Al-Hussainiya District, and Ain Al-Tamr).

The Council approved the donation of (10) Rafidain Bank explosives detection devices (RapScan type) to the Holy Shrine of Imam Ali (peace be upon him) (which had previously been delivered to the Holy Shrine of Imam Ali (peace be upon him) in a useable form), based on the instructions to facilitate the implementation of the Federal General Budget Law for the fiscal years (2023 - 2024 - 2025).

The Council also considered a number of topics on its agenda and took the following decisions:

First: Authorizing the Minister of Construction, Housing, Municipalities and Public Works to sign the exchanged letters for the Chinese grant provided to the Iraqi government in the amount of (53,650) million Chinese Yuan, in the form of specialized mechanisms and as stated in the exchanged letters between the Iraqi and Chinese sides, taking into account changing the signature formula to be in the name of the Ministry of Construction, Housing, Municipalities and Public Works, and not in the name of the Iraqi government, so that these exchanged letters are not considered an international agreement, and coordination with the Ministries of (Planning and Finance) in accordance with the provisions of the Federal General Budget Law of the Republic of Iraq for the fiscal years (2023-2024-2025).

Second: Cancel Cabinet Resolutions (581 of 2013) and (326 of 2014), due to the long period of time that has passed since they were not implemented and the lack of need for them due to the financial circumstances that surrounded the treasury at the time, and cancel Cabinet Resolution (24032 of 2024).

Third: Increasing the capital of the Real Estate Bank (500 billion dinars) to become (550 billion dinars), based on the provisions of the Public Companies Law (22 of 1997) amended, and the Ministry of Finance taking the necessary measures for implementation.
Fourth: Exempting the Civil Aviation Authority from the contracting methods in the instructions for implementing government contracts, with regard to programs and computers only, for the purpose of purchasing the authority’s management systems and air safety directly from specialized companies that produce these programs, purchasing licenses, computers and servers from authorized agents of the global company (Microsoft).

Fifth: The Ministry of Finance sold an area of ​​(1750) square meters of the plot of land numbered (23 m9/Kurka Jal) belonging to it, to the Diwan of Endowments of the Christian, Yazidi and Mandaean Religions, based on the Law for the Sale and Lease of State Property (21 of 2013) as amended after estimating its value by the committee formed pursuant to the aforementioned law, and extinguishing a percentage of (50%) of the actual consideration in accordance with the provisions of the Federal Financial Administration Law (6 of 2019) as amended and Cabinet Resolution (23447 of 2023). LINK

 Game of Patience: Clare thanks for sharing!  This information reveals amendments being made to the 2024 budget!