Shafaq News- Erbil

The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) on Wednesday called on Iraq’s federal government to recognize the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) as accounting for 14.14% of Iraq’s population, based on the 2024 national census, rather than the 12.68% figure adopted by the Supreme Council for Population.

Following its weekly meeting, the KRG Council of Ministers said in a statement that the census in the KRI had been conducted under agreements reached between the regional and federal planning ministries and in accordance with procedures approved by the federal Council of Ministers.

Iraq’s Federal Ministry of Planning said in February that detailed tables based on the raw census data put the KRI’s share at 14.14%, adding that the 12.68% figure resulted from applying a population-migration matrix that counted some residents of the region according to their previous places of residence outside the region.

According to the Kurdistan Regional Statistics Office, the Region’s 2024 population stands at 6,519,129. 

Beyond demographic statistics, the KRG said establishing the region’s official population share has implications for its financial and constitutional entitlements under Iraq’s federal budget framework, as well as the distribution of public revenues and expenditures.

Population figures also affect the region’s representation in elected federal councils and bodies, the federal presidency and other constitutional and federal institutions, according to the council. It added that the figures also have implications for Iraq’s diplomatic representation abroad.

Meanwhile, Baghdad and Erbil continue talks over Iraq’s 2027 federal budget, with the KRI seeking an allocation based on its share of the population according to the 2024 census.