Shafaq News- Baghdad/ Najaf/ Babil

Recurring service disruptions and flooded streets across Iraqi provinces during the rainy season reflect more than a lack of funding. According to MPs and experts, the disruptions expose years of shortcomings in planning, project implementation, and oversight, despite annual government budget allocations. Infrastructure projects continue to fall behind population growth, urban expansion, and the needs of cities.

Rainfall across several provinces over the past week highlighted the limited effectiveness of government spending on sewage and stormwater drainage projects, according to observers of public services. Long-delayed projects, deteriorating drainage networks, and a lack of roads and basic services continue to affect many areas, compounded by funding delays, poor contractor performance, and inadequate accountability.

Funding Shortages and Outstanding Debts

Hassan Shaker Al-Kaabi, a member of parliament's Finance Committee representing Babil province, attributed the province's weak infrastructure not only to limited budget allocations but also to fiscal uncertainty and delays in approving federal budgets.

Speaking to Shafaq News, Al-Kaabi explained that these problems have prevented the completion of public service projects, leaving some suspended for years and allowing parts of them to deteriorate, further worsening residents' living conditions.

“Recent rainfall exposed the extent of infrastructure problems in several parts of Babil, where vehicles could not pass through some neighborhoods, and students struggled to reach their schools,” he noted.

Read more: Floods isolate villages, fill dams as heavy rains sweep Iraq

Al-Kaabi stressed that limited financial resources have prevented authorities from completing road paving and infrastructure projects, including in areas where technical work has already been completed but funding remains an obstacle.

He also pointed to more than 4.5 trillion Iraqi dinars (approximately $2.96 billion) in outstanding payments owed to contractors across the provinces, including amounts associated with suspended or delayed projects.

Securing funding, he argued, should involve more than launching new projects. “Authorities must also complete existing works, settle outstanding debts, and address essential service needs.”

The MP identified two main obstacles to approving the federal budget: the lack of an agreement with the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) over financial issues and the existence of multiple financial funds allocated to different sectors and provinces.

He proposed consolidating these allocations within the federal budget and directing the funds to provincial administrations, with spending placed under the supervision of regulatory authorities.

Impact on Public Services and Education

The consequences of funding shortages and stalled projects extend beyond drainage networks and roads to other sectors, particularly education.

Schools and access roads in several provinces remain in poor condition, despite rehabilitation projects launched years ago.

Shaymaa Abdul Sattar Al-Fatlawi, a member of parliament's Education Committee representing Najaf province, linked delays in approving the federal budget to deteriorating conditions in public services, education, and healthcare.

She stressed that the budget should be based on a detailed assessment of provincial needs and financial entitlements rather than rushed approval at the expense of proper planning.

In comments to Shafaq News, Al-Fatlawi highlighted particularly poor infrastructure in districts and subdistricts far from provincial city centers.

Unpaved dirt roads leading to schools make it difficult for students to attend classes during rainfall. Some areas also continue to rely on mud-built schools, prefabricated buildings, and unfinished steel-frame structures that were supposed to be replaced.

Najaf provides one example. Al-Fatlawi pointed to unfinished structures and prefabricated facilities associated with Project No. 1, launched in 2010, which remain in place despite the years that have passed. “These cases are evidence of the scale of stalled projects across central and southern Iraq.”

Al-Fatlawi called for the next federal budget to account for population density, poverty levels, and the number of people relocating to or visiting each province.

She singled out Najaf, where public services require allocations that reflect both its resident population and the large influx of religious visitors, calling for addressing older stalled projects and providing the necessary support for schools, roads, and other essential services.

Government Plans to Address Drainage Problems

The Iraqi Ministry of Construction, Housing and Public Municipalities, meanwhile, maintains that it is implementing strategic and service projects to address bottlenecks in sewage and stormwater drainage networks.

Ministry spokesperson Nabil Al-Saffar told Shafaq News that approximately 80 projects are being implemented across the provinces, covering pumping stations, drainage and treatment facilities, and stormwater and sewage networks.

He explained that authorities are prioritizing areas repeatedly affected by water accumulation and localized flooding.

The ministry's investment plan includes completing 25 service projects across eight provinces by March 2027, he noted.

In Nineveh province, the projects include completing the right-bank wastewater treatment plant in Mosul, transmission pipelines, pumping stations, and sewage projects in Al-Hamdaniya and Bartella.

The plan also covers sewage and stormwater drainage projects in Hit and southern Fallujah, as well as the Fallujah sewage project, which has a planned capacity of 35,000 cubic meters per day.

Other projects include stormwater and sewage networks in Ramadi, the capital of Al-Anbar province; completion of the second phase of the sewage project in Najaf; and the construction of residential sewage networks in Karbala.

In Diyala province, planned works include stormwater and wastewater networks, pumping stations, and the Al-Khalis treatment plant.

The investment plan also includes sewage networks in Al-Bashaer and infrastructure projects in Wasit province, alongside the rehabilitation of several neighborhoods and residential areas in Diwaniyah.

According to Al-Saffar, “the projects aim to increase the capacity of drainage networks, reduce standing water, and limit damage to roads and private property.”

He outlined a series of technical and oversight procedures designed to ensure construction quality. These begin with reviews of engineering designs and laboratory testing of construction materials, followed by on-site supervision from resident engineers and technical committees. Before final handover, authorities inspect the networks, treatment facilities, and pumping stations. Their performance is also monitored after they enter service, he affirmed.

Addressing delays in project implementation, Al-Saffar cautioned against assigning responsibility to a single party, explaining that the causes vary from one project to another.

Some delays stem from poor contractor performance or violations of approved designs and technical specifications. “In such cases, the ministry can issue warnings, impose delay penalties, and investigate the reasons for underperformance.”

Where legal and contractual requirements are met, authorities can ultimately terminate a contractor's involvement and reassign the project to another company. However, Al-Saffar pointed to several factors beyond contractors' control, including insufficient financial allocations, conflicts with existing infrastructure and utility networks, and delays by project-owning authorities in resolving these issues or providing the requirements needed for implementation.

He also identified delayed contractor payments and the failure to provide sufficient funding as additional causes of project delays.

Read more: 1,800+ delayed public projects slow Iraq's infrastructure development