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ERBIL, Kurdistan Region -- The Iraqi Ministry of Finance estimates that the 2013 budget will be around 138 trillion Iraqi dinars (ID).
Next year’s budget is larger than this year’s due to an increase in oil export revenues. In 2012, the budget was 117 trillion ID; the Kurdistan Region's share was 12.6 trillion ID.
According to Rafi Issawi, the Iraqi minister of finance, this is the biggest budget in Iraqi history.
The sovereign expenses in this budget are estimated to reach 41.16 trillion ID and the governance expenses 10.21 trillion ID. After extracting figures these from the total, 78.2 trillion ID will remain. Seventeen percent of this amount – or 14.27 trillion ID -- is to be given to the Kurdistan Region.
This is an increase of 1.6 trillion ID from the Kurdistan Region’s share in 2012.
According to the budget law, the Iraqi government is required to prepare a bill for the upcoming year’s budget in September and pass it to parliament. Parliament is required to vote on the bill before the new year.
As the prime minister of Iraq and commander in chief of the Iraqi armed forces, Nuri al-Maliki is entitled to spend 20 billion ID from the budget. Hussain Shahristani, the deputy prime minister for energy, is entitled to 15 billion ID to develop the oil sector.
The 2013 budget bill allocates 5 billion ID to the office of Shahristani and 3.15 trillion ID to the development of the oil sector. There is also 13.6 trillion ID set aside for foreign oil companies that was not part of last year’s budget.
Ninety-five percent of the Iraqi budget comes from oil revenues.
Abdulkhaliq Rafiq, a financial advisor in Kurdistan’s Ministry of Finance, said, "The Iraqi government is allocating huge amounts of money for sovereign expenses every year, but it is not ready to pay the share of the Kurdistan Region in some sectors."
According to Rafiq, due to missed or insufficient governance payments since 2005, the total amount that Baghdad owes the KRG is 9.8 trillion ID.
"The Iraqi government has allocated an extremely sizable amount of money to develop the oil fields in the south,” he added. “This money has been subtracted from the sovereign budget. The Kurdistan Region also wants to develop its oil fields, but Baghdad is not willing to give Kurdistan anything for this purpose from the budget."
One issue that comes up every year is the budget of the Iraqi Ministry of Defense. Iraqi law requires the central government to pay for the Peshmerga forces of the Kurdistan Region from the budget of the Iraqi Ministry of Defense.
In the 2013 budget, the Iraqi government has allocated 9.5 trillion ID for the Ministry of Defense. The share of Kurdistan’s Ministry of Peshmerga should therefore be around 1.6 trillion ID.
Rafiq said that the Iraqi government has not paid a single dime to the Ministry of Peshmerga since 2005. "The Iraqi government owes the Kurdistan Region more than $6 billion in overdue payments for the Ministry of Peshmerga."
Maliki has the authority to receive and spend the budgets of the following institutions:
1. Council of Ministers: 96.22 million ID
2. Prime Minister's Office: 405.88 million ID
3. National Security Council: 19.96 million ID
4. General command of the Iraqi armed forces: 65.24 million ID
5. Intelligence Agency Office: 270.36 million ID
6. Inspector-general of Intelligence: 42.9 million ID
7. National Security Agency: 75.64 million ID
8. Ministry of Defense: 9.5 trillion ID
9. Ministry of Interior: 10 trillion ID
Shahristani has the authority to spend the budgets of the following institutions:
1. Shahristani's office: 5 billion ID
2. Increasing oil production projects: 3.15 trillion ID
3. Foreign oil companies' projects: 13.6 trillion ID
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Next year’s budget is larger than this year’s due to an increase in oil export revenues. In 2012, the budget was 117 trillion ID; the Kurdistan Region's share was 12.6 trillion ID.
According to Rafi Issawi, the Iraqi minister of finance, this is the biggest budget in Iraqi history.
The sovereign expenses in this budget are estimated to reach 41.16 trillion ID and the governance expenses 10.21 trillion ID. After extracting figures these from the total, 78.2 trillion ID will remain. Seventeen percent of this amount – or 14.27 trillion ID -- is to be given to the Kurdistan Region.
This is an increase of 1.6 trillion ID from the Kurdistan Region’s share in 2012.
According to the budget law, the Iraqi government is required to prepare a bill for the upcoming year’s budget in September and pass it to parliament. Parliament is required to vote on the bill before the new year.
As the prime minister of Iraq and commander in chief of the Iraqi armed forces, Nuri al-Maliki is entitled to spend 20 billion ID from the budget. Hussain Shahristani, the deputy prime minister for energy, is entitled to 15 billion ID to develop the oil sector.
The 2013 budget bill allocates 5 billion ID to the office of Shahristani and 3.15 trillion ID to the development of the oil sector. There is also 13.6 trillion ID set aside for foreign oil companies that was not part of last year’s budget.
Ninety-five percent of the Iraqi budget comes from oil revenues.
Abdulkhaliq Rafiq, a financial advisor in Kurdistan’s Ministry of Finance, said, "The Iraqi government is allocating huge amounts of money for sovereign expenses every year, but it is not ready to pay the share of the Kurdistan Region in some sectors."
According to Rafiq, due to missed or insufficient governance payments since 2005, the total amount that Baghdad owes the KRG is 9.8 trillion ID.
"The Iraqi government has allocated an extremely sizable amount of money to develop the oil fields in the south,” he added. “This money has been subtracted from the sovereign budget. The Kurdistan Region also wants to develop its oil fields, but Baghdad is not willing to give Kurdistan anything for this purpose from the budget."
One issue that comes up every year is the budget of the Iraqi Ministry of Defense. Iraqi law requires the central government to pay for the Peshmerga forces of the Kurdistan Region from the budget of the Iraqi Ministry of Defense.
In the 2013 budget, the Iraqi government has allocated 9.5 trillion ID for the Ministry of Defense. The share of Kurdistan’s Ministry of Peshmerga should therefore be around 1.6 trillion ID.
Rafiq said that the Iraqi government has not paid a single dime to the Ministry of Peshmerga since 2005. "The Iraqi government owes the Kurdistan Region more than $6 billion in overdue payments for the Ministry of Peshmerga."
Maliki has the authority to receive and spend the budgets of the following institutions:
1. Council of Ministers: 96.22 million ID
2. Prime Minister's Office: 405.88 million ID
3. National Security Council: 19.96 million ID
4. General command of the Iraqi armed forces: 65.24 million ID
5. Intelligence Agency Office: 270.36 million ID
6. Inspector-general of Intelligence: 42.9 million ID
7. National Security Agency: 75.64 million ID
8. Ministry of Defense: 9.5 trillion ID
9. Ministry of Interior: 10 trillion ID
Shahristani has the authority to spend the budgets of the following institutions:
1. Shahristani's office: 5 billion ID
2. Increasing oil production projects: 3.15 trillion ID
3. Foreign oil companies' projects: 13.6 trillion ID
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