Baghdad halts housing approvals for new land scheme

Shafaq News- Baghdad

Iraq has paused approvals for new residential investment projects, the National Investment Commission said on Sunday, as authorities review a nationwide housing plan aimed at distributing land plots across the country.

The order, issued by acting Commission Head Haidar Mohammed, is linked to the “one-million residential land plot” initiative unveiled by Iraq’s Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi, which targets the country’s chronic housing shortage.

Under the directive, Mohammed instructed investment authorities to compile a detailed inventory of active and planned projects for review, calling for swift submission while warning of legal consequences in cases of noncompliance.

The housing program, one of the cabinet’s key initiatives, seeks to expand land distribution and support housing development across the country. Last week, al-Zaidi invited private sector companies and business leaders to participate in the scheme, which also includes allocating portions of border customs revenues and electricity fees to help finance the project.

Iraq has faced a long-standing housing deficit, with the Ministry of Construction, Housing and Municipalities estimating a need for about five million additional housing units to meet rising demand. Since 2003, successive governments have introduced a series of housing initiatives and large-scale residential projects aimed at narrowing the gap, though most have fallen short of their targets, leaving the crisis largely unresolved.

Read more: What does Iraq's new government promise? A guide to Ali Al-Zaidi's ministerial program