Iraq's government must carry out structural reforms to foster inclusive growth and emerge stronger from the pandemic, the International Monetary Fund said.
The country's economy is forecast to shrink by 11 per cent this year, the worst contraction in 17 years, due to lower oil output and the pandemic.
The sharp decline in oil revenue is expected to widen the fiscal and external account deficits to 20 per cent and 16 per cent of gross domestic product, respectively, the fund said on Sunday after a month-long series of talks with Iraqi authorities.
It called for measures to bolster public finances to meet critical health and social expenditure needs, reform the electricity sector, fight corruption and expand institutional capacity.
“The fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic and the sharp decline in oil prices and output have aggravated Iraq’s economic vulnerabilities,” said Tokhir Mirzoev, the IMF official who led the mission.
“A decisive recalibration of near-term economic policies will be critical to ensure macroeconomic stability and protect the vulnerable.”
Iraq, Opec’s second-largest producer, is highly reliant on oil revenue to foot 90 per cent of government expenditure, including $5 billion spent on salaries for public servants each month.
That leaves the government with difficult decisions that could raise the prospect of further civil strife.
The country had more than 574,600 Covid-19 cases, 12,579 deaths and more than 507,400 recoveries as of Sunday, according to Worldometer, which tracks the disease.
The fund said a comprehensive package of economic policies to overcome the pandemic was a top priority. It also called for a reduction of fiscal and external deficits.
In the next phase of the pandemic, additional fiscal resources will be needed to address the crisis, including the ability to buy and distribute the vaccine widely.
Reducing the fiscal and external imbalances will also play a critical role in easing financial constraints, ensuring debt sustainability and protecting international reserves, the IMF said.
Iraq’s 2021 budget should address areas of “fiscal vulnerability”, mainly reversing the “unsustainable expansion of wage and pension bills, reducing inefficient energy subsidies and raising non-oil revenue”, Mr Mirzoev said.
Measures to protect vulnerable segments of the population will be of “paramount importance”, he said.
Mr Mirzoez also called for policies to significantly boost and expand the coverage of cash transfers and to strengthen the social safety net.
“Uncertain medium-term oil market prospects and strong population growth further raise the urgency of advancing the reform agenda,” he said.
In the finance sector, a “decisive” strategy is needed to reform large state-owned banks and level the playing field, he said.
This will allow private sector development and secure financial stability.
Stronger governance controls, better supervision and an international audit of these large state-owned banks are important to provide options for their restructuring, the IMF official said.
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
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iPhone XS Max
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Know your Camel lingo
The bairaq is a competition for the best herd of 50 camels, named for the banner its winner takes home
Namoos - a word of congratulations reserved for falconry competitions, camel races and camel pageants. It best translates as 'the pride of victory' - and for competitors, it is priceless
Asayel camels - sleek, short-haired hound-like racers
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Millions Street - the thoroughfare where camels are led and where white 4x4s throng throughout the festival
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
The biog
Born: Kuwait in 1986
Family: She is the youngest of seven siblings
Time in the UAE: 10 years
Hobbies: audiobooks and fitness: she works out every day, enjoying kickboxing and basketball
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Terror attacks in Paris, November 13, 2015
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- Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the terrorists, did not directly participate in the attacks, thought to be due to a technical glitch in his suicide vest
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The view from The National
Biog:
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Volunteers offer workers a lifeline
Community volunteers have swung into action delivering food packages and toiletries to the men.
When provisions are distributed, the men line up in long queues for packets of rice, flour, sugar, salt, pulses, milk, biscuits, shaving kits, soap and telecom cards.
Volunteers from St Mary’s Catholic Church said some workers came to the church to pray for their families and ask for assistance.
Boxes packed with essential food items were distributed to workers in the Dubai Investments Park and Ras Al Khaimah camps last week. Workers at the Sonapur camp asked for Dh1,600 towards their gas bill.
“Especially in this year of tolerance we consider ourselves privileged to be able to lend a helping hand to our needy brothers in the Actco camp," Father Lennie Connully, parish priest of St Mary’s.
Workers spoke of their helplessness, seeing children’s marriages cancelled because of lack of money going home. Others told of their misery of being unable to return home when a parent died.
“More than daily food, they are worried about not sending money home for their family,” said Kusum Dutta, a volunteer who works with the Indian consulate.
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Gertrude Bell's life in focus
A feature film
At one point, two feature films were in the works, but only German director Werner Herzog’s project starring Nicole Kidman would be made. While there were high hopes he would do a worthy job of directing the biopic, when Queen of the Desert arrived in 2015 it was a disappointment. Critics panned the film, in which Herzog largely glossed over Bell’s political work in favour of her ill-fated romances.
A documentary
A project that did do justice to Bell arrived the next year: Sabine Krayenbuhl and Zeva Oelbaum’s Letters from Baghdad: The Extraordinary Life and Times of Gertrude Bell. Drawing on more than 1,000 pieces of archival footage, 1,700 documents and 1,600 letters, the filmmakers painstakingly pieced together a compelling narrative that managed to convey both the depth of Bell’s experience and her tortured love life.
Books, letters and archives
Two biographies have been written about Bell, and both are worth reading: Georgina Howell’s 2006 book Queen of the Desert and Janet Wallach’s 1996 effort Desert Queen. Bell published several books documenting her travels and there are also several volumes of her letters, although they are hard to find in print. Original documents are housed at the Gertrude Bell Archive at the University of Newcastle, which has an online catalogue.
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Breast cancer in men: the facts
1) Breast cancer is men is rare but can develop rapidly. It usually occurs in those over the ages of 60, but can occasionally affect younger men.
2) Symptoms can include a lump, discharge, swollen glands or a rash.
3) People with a history of cancer in the family can be more susceptible.
4) Treatments include surgery and chemotherapy but early diagnosis is the key.
5) Anyone concerned is urged to contact their doctor
