Financial dispute between Erbil, Baghdad persists amidst salary delays

Shafaq News / A source within the Ministry of Finance in the Kurdistan Regional Government revealed on Monday that a delegation from the region's government is set to visit the capital, Baghdad, tomorrow, Tuesday.

The source informed Shafaq News Agency that "the delegation will hold a meeting with the financial committee of the Iraqi parliament on Wednesday to discuss the issues related to salaries and the budget."

The Kurdish Minister of Finance will be part of the Kurdish delegation, alongside several government officials from Kurdistan.

In a related context, Soran Omar, a member of parliament from al-Sulaymaniyah province, disclosed the reasons behind the delay in disbursing the salaries of the region's employees and the non-implementation of federal budget provisions for the current year.

Omar stated in an interview with Shafaq News Agency, "The office of the federal prime minister confirmed that Baghdad's government has not yet reached a legal agreement with the committee of the Kurdistan Regional Government to send funds to the region under the 2023-2025 budget law."

He added, "On August 28, 2023, I sent letter number (617/D) to the Iraqi Prime Minister regarding the non-implementation of the budget law and the lack of funding for the Kurdistan Region according to its allocated share in the law. Based on letter number (2329322/3002) dated October 11, 2023, the office of the prime minister responded, confirming that the two committees from the central and regional governments have not reached any legal agreement. Consequently, the Kurdistan Region has not been funded according to the budget law."

Omar highlighted that "the region is three months behind in salary payments, despite the loan it received, and the fate of the salaries for these three months remains uncertain."