Parliament anticipates review of budget amendments

The Iraqi government is gearing up to propose amendments to the federal budget, but MPs are questioning the reasons behind the delays.

According to Article 77 of the 2023-2025 federal budget, the government was required to submit updated spending tables for 2024 before the end of last year, but it is unclear why it has yet to do so. One possibility is that the end of year financial statement for 2023 has yet to be completed, and without it, the government cannot work out how much it would need to spend this year. Speaking at a press conference this week, PM Sudani assured that his government would soon send the necessary tables.

The budget tables require revisions based on the government's updated projections for revenues and expenditure needs. There is uncertainty regarding whether the government will revise its oil price forecast, currently set at $70 per barrel, but last year’s oil sales averaged $79 per barrel. Notably, the anticipated 400,000 barrels per day of oil from the Kurdistan Region were not attained last year due to production setbacks stemming from the ongoing pipeline closure to Turkey.