Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al Sudani this week identified pervasive corruption as the main threat to the country, but his newly installed government also faces other problems that need to be tackled after a year of bitter political deadlock.
Mr Al Sudani’s government was sworn in on October 27 and begins its work under the cloud of two major corruption scandals.
A former minister revealed last month that 3.7 trillion Iraqi dinars (almost $2.5 billion) was embezzled from the tax authority in what is being described locally as “the theft of the century”.
On Wednesday, the National Security Service announced the arrest of a criminal network that siphoned crude oil from pipelines in remote areas of southern Iraq and smuggled it out of the county. Senior interior ministry and intelligence officers were allegedly involved.
In his first press conference on Tuesday, Mr Al Sudani called corruption "a serious threat to the Iraqi state, more dangerous than all other threats that have weighed on Iraq".
He vowed to tackle the problem. "The citizens want to feel that there is a sense of responsibility, and that looted money is returned," he said.
Speaking at the annual Middle East Research Institute Forum in Erbil, the UN Special Representative for Iraq Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert described the corruption as “pervasive, structural and systemic”.
Ms Hennis-Plasschaert warned that in “the absence of tackling corruption any attempt to push through serious reform will not succeed. This is really the cause by now of Iraq’s dysfunctionality”.
She blamed the informal power-sharing arrangement — called Muhasasa in Arabic — that was established after the overthrow of dictator Saddam Hussein in the 2003 US-led invasion.
Under the arrangement, which has been the basis for all subsequent Iraqi governments, Shiites are entitled to 12 ministries, Sunnis six, Kurds four and the rest distributed among other religious and ethnic groups, regardless of election results.
“That arrangement turned into a quite closed community, a community of collusion and a community of corruption protection,” Ms Hennis-Plasschaert said.
“I think that it hinders the development of Iraq because it distracts state resources that are meant for national development and now are diverted to private and partisan interests,” she said.
Iraq is considered one of most corrupt countries in the world, ranking 157 out of 180 in Transparency International's corruption perceptions index.
The widespread corruption has crippled the country’s efforts to recover from decades of war and UN-imposed economic sanctions.
Last year, former president Barham Salih estimated that Iraq had lost $150bn to embezzlement since 2003.
More heat, less water
Corruption aside, Mr Al Sudani’s government must also deal with economic, security and environmental issues amid bitter political divisions that delayed the formation of a new government for more than a year after the 2021 general election.
Iraq is the fifth most vulnerable country in the world to the effects of climate change, according to the UN Environment Programme.
Over the past three years, the country has experienced record temperatures that exceeded 50°C in many places during summer, insufficient and diminishing rainfall and frequent sand and dust storms.
Coupled with the reduced water flow of its two main rivers after passing through Turkey and Iran, the extreme weather has intensified droughts and water scarcity in Iraq.
Desertification affects 39 per cent of the country and 54 per cent of its agricultural land has been degraded, mainly due to soil salinity caused by historically low river levels, less rain and rising sea levels.
Beside domestic measures against climate change, Mr Al Sudani’s government needs to convince Turkey and Iran to give Iraq a fair share of river water, something previous governments failed to do. Turkey and Iran argue that they, too, are suffering from a scarcity of water and say Iraq is following outdated irrigation methods.
On Wednesday, Minister of Water Resources Aoun Diab discussed the issue with Faysal Aroglu, the special envoy of the Turkish president on water, who promised to “co-operate with Iraq and exchange visits to reach understandings for a fair share” of water, according to the ministry’s statement.
Oil dependence
Opec’s second-largest producer, Iraq has for decades depended on oil revenues for at least 90 per cent of its income.
There have been no serious attempts to diversify the economy, strengthen the private sector or improve the business investment climate since 2003.
As a result, the economy takes a hit when oil prices fall or fluctuate in the international market, forcing the government to introduce austerity measures.
Thanks to a rise in oil prices; the devaluation of the currency in December 2020; and a limit on spending imposed on the caretaker government since the election, the country's foreign reserves stand at $85bn, the highest since 2003.
With the monthly oil revenue hovering around, and sometimes exceeding, $10bn in some months, the reserves are expected to increase to $90bn by the end of the year, the central bank said.
The country also boosted its gold reserves to 130.4 tonnes last month, it said.
Poverty and lack of services
Despite its oil wealth, decades of war, corruption, mismanagement and political fighting have left Iraq with poor public services and dilapidated infrastructure.
Despite the billions of dollars earned from oil revenue since 2003, Iraqis are still complaining about poor roads, dilapidated hospitals and broken schools.
Many Iraqis receive only a few hours of state electricity a day and buy the rest of their needs from private generators. According to the previous prime minister, the country has spent at least $60bn on the power sector since 2003.
Although Iraq sits on vast oil reserves, the country has in recent years experienced an alarming rise in poverty levels, exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic.
The most recent government report said an additional 4.5 million Iraqis were pushed into poverty in 2020.
The increase pushed the national poverty rate to 31.7 per cent, up from 20 per cent in 2018, and raised the total number of Iraq’s poor to 11.4 million ― more than a quarter of its population of about 40 million.
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Sui Dhaaga: Made in India
Director: Sharat Katariya
Starring: Varun Dhawan, Anushka Sharma, Raghubir Yadav
3.5/5
Gulf Under 19s
Pools
A – Dubai College, Deira International School, Al Ain Amblers, Warriors
B – Dubai English Speaking College, Repton Royals, Jumeirah College, Gems World Academy
C – British School Al Khubairat, Abu Dhabi Harlequins, Dubai Hurricanes, Al Yasmina Academy
D – Dubai Exiles, Jumeirah English Speaking School, English College, Bahrain Colts
Recent winners
2018 – Dubai College
2017 – British School Al Khubairat
2016 – Dubai English Speaking School
2015 – Al Ain Amblers
2014 – Dubai College
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Xpanceo
Started: 2018
Founders: Roman Axelrod, Valentyn Volkov
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Smart contact lenses, augmented/virtual reality
Funding: $40 million
Investor: Opportunity Venture (Asia)
Mubalada World Tennis Championship 2018 schedule
Thursday December 27
Men's quarter-finals
Kevin Anderson v Hyeon Chung 4pm
Dominic Thiem v Karen Khachanov 6pm
Women's exhibition
Serena Williams v Venus Williams 8pm
Friday December 28
5th place play-off 3pm
Men's semi-finals
Rafael Nadal v Anderson/Chung 5pm
Novak Djokovic v Thiem/Khachanov 7pm
Saturday December 29
3rd place play-off 5pm
Men's final 7pm
PROFILE OF CURE.FIT
Started: July 2016
Founders: Mukesh Bansal and Ankit Nagori
Based: Bangalore, India
Sector: Health & wellness
Size: 500 employees
Investment: $250 million
Investors: Accel, Oaktree Capital (US); Chiratae Ventures, Epiq Capital, Innoven Capital, Kalaari Capital, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Piramal Group’s Anand Piramal, Pratithi Investment Trust, Ratan Tata (India); and Unilever Ventures (Unilever’s global venture capital arm)
Results
1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) 1hr 32mins 03.897sec
2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull-Honda) at 0.745s
3. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes) 37.383s
4. Lando Norris (McLaren) 46.466s
5.Sergio Perez (Red Bull-Honda) 52.047s
6. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) 59.090s
7. Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren) 1:06.004
8. Carlos Sainz Jr (Ferrari) 1:07.100
9. Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri-Honda) 1:25.692
10. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin-Mercedes) 1:26.713,
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
LIVING IN...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
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The biog
From: Upper Egypt
Age: 78
Family: a daughter in Egypt; a son in Dubai and his wife, Nabila
Favourite Abu Dhabi activity: walking near to Emirates Palace
Favourite building in Abu Dhabi: Emirates Palace
Read more about the coronavirus
MATCH INFO
Manchester United 1 (Rashford 36')
Liverpool 1 (Lallana 84')
Man of the match: Marcus Rashford (Manchester United)
Gully Boy
Director: Zoya Akhtar
Producer: Excel Entertainment & Tiger Baby
Cast: Ranveer Singh, Alia Bhatt, Kalki Koechlin, Siddhant Chaturvedi
Rating: 4/5 stars
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Hili 2: Unesco World Heritage site
The site is part of the Hili archaeological park in Al Ain. Excavations there have proved the existence of the earliest known agricultural communities in modern-day UAE. Some date to the Bronze Age but Hili 2 is an Iron Age site. The Iron Age witnessed the development of the falaj, a network of channels that funnelled water from natural springs in the area. Wells allowed settlements to be established, but falaj meant they could grow and thrive. Unesco, the UN's cultural body, awarded Al Ain's sites - including Hili 2 - world heritage status in 2011. Now the most recent dig at the site has revealed even more about the skilled people that lived and worked there.
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How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
CHINESE GRAND PRIX STARTING GRID
1st row
Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari)
Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari)
2nd row
Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes-GP)
Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
3rd row
Max Verstappen (Red Bull Racing)
Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull Racing)
4th row
Nico Hulkenberg (Renault)
Sergio Perez (Force India)
5th row
Carlos Sainz Jr (Renault)
Romain Grosjean (Haas)
6th row
Kevin Magnussen (Haas)
Esteban Ocon (Force India)
7th row
Fernando Alonso (McLaren)
Stoffel Vandoorne (McLaren)
8th row
Brendon Hartley (Toro Rosso)
Sergey Sirotkin (Williams)
9th row
Pierre Gasly (Toro Rosso)
Lance Stroll (Williams)
10th row
Charles Leclerc (Sauber)
arcus Ericsson (Sauber)
World ranking (at month’s end)
Jan - 257
Feb - 198
Mar - 159
Apr - 161
May - 159
Jun – 162
Currently: 88
Year-end rank since turning pro
2016 - 279
2015 - 185
2014 - 143
2013 - 63
2012 - 384
2011 - 883
