Shafaq News – Baghdad

The Iraqi parliament has spent more than 5.5 trillion dinars (about $3.88 billion) between 2015 and 2025, only passing 321 laws, Iraqi economist Manar al-Obaidi revealed on Saturday.

According to al-Obaidi, each law passed over the past decade cost the state an average of 17 billion dinars (approximately $12.01 million). He noted that the current parliamentary term recorded the highest expenditure compared with previous sessions.

"The current term’s total spending reached 2.4 trillion dinars ($1.70 billion), during which the parliament passed only 69 laws," al-Obaidi explained. "This means that each law costs roughly 35 billion dinars (approximately $24.73 million)."

By contrast, the previous parliamentary session, he said, spent 1.8 trillion dinars ($1.27 billion) to pass 91 laws — averaging 20 billion dinars (approximately $14.13 million) per law. If current spending trends continue, the economist cautioned, the cost of passing a single law could exceed 100 billion dinars (over $70.65 million) in the next parliamentary cycle.

The Iraqi parliament, which consists of 329 members, manages one of the country’s largest institutional budgets, covering salaries, administrative expenses, and logistical operations.

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