KRG confirms fulfillment of employee salary obligations, awaits federal funds
Shafaq News/ On Wednesday, the Kurdistan Regional Government(KRG) reiterated its fulfillment of financial obligations, emphasizing that itis now waiting for Baghdad to provide the necessary funding to pay employeesalaries.
The KRG announced in a statement that "the KRGcontinues its efforts with the federal government to provide financialentitlements for employees, and it is awaiting the transfer of salaries for October,November, and December at the earliest opportunity."
The regional government’s council also called on the federalgovernment in Baghdad to find a permanent solution to the salary deficit issuein its next session, which will be held in Baghdad on Thursday, in accordancewith the powers granted to it and under Article 60 of the Iraqi Public BudgetLaw.
On Monday, Rebaz Hamlan, Iraq's Deputy Minister of Finance,announced significant progress in paying salaries for Kurdistan Regionemployees. He also confirmed that “Baghdad has disbursed October's salaries(761 billion dinars) and will release November's (759 billion dinars) by week'send.”
The Kurdistan government has also transferred funds to coverpart of the salary shortfall, with a monthly need of 996 billion dinars,leaving a gap of 235 billion dinars. The December salary list has been sent toBaghdad, and payments are expected after final audits, according to Hamlan.
Earlier, Al-Sulaymaniyah province and its suburbs arewitnessing widespread strikes in several institutions due to a two-month delayin salary payments.
Salaries Issue
The payment of salaries to Kurdistan's civil servants hasbeen a longstanding and complex problem. The KRG has struggled with a severefinancial crisis, exacerbated by the suspension of its oil exports in March2023 due to a court ruling in a dispute between Iraq and Turkiye.
In February 2024, Iraq’s Federal Supreme Court instructedthe KRG to provide detailed salary data to facilitate the release of theregion's share of the federal budget. However, payment delays have continued,with the KRG accusing Baghdad of inconsistent disbursements.
In September 2024, high-level meetings between Baghdad andErbil were held to resolve ongoing issues, including salary payments. WhileBaghdad has since disbursed salaries, delays remain frequent, leaving theKurdistan Region dependent on local revenues and its contested 12.6% share ofthe federal budget.
