Salaries “break the back” of the budget.. Parliamentary Finance “worried” about oil prices and looking for alternatives
Salaries “break the back” of the budget.. Parliamentary Finance “worried” about oil prices and looking for alternatives
2024-09-23 04:51
Shafaq News/ The Parliamentary Finance Committee confirmed, on Monday, that it is looking for alternative revenues for oil due to the fluctuations in its prices in global markets that are causing “concern”, renewing its assurances regarding securing monthly salaries.
The head of the committee, Atwan Al-Atwani, told Shafaq News Agency, “Iraq depends on oil to increase revenues, which is considered a basic source of financing the general budget of the Iraqi state, so non-oil revenues must be sought and maximized in the general budget.”
He added, “The financial liquidity is available from the Central Bank of Iraq, and we need eight trillion dinars to finance employees’ salaries monthly.”
Al-Atwani stressed, “We in the Parliamentary Finance Committee are not reassured by the changes in oil prices and their instability, and we are working to enhance collection and non-oil revenues to finance the Iraqi budget.”
The Ministry of Finance issued a statement on September 19, denying what has been recently circulated by some figures regarding statements attributed to Finance Minister Taif Sami regarding the ministry’s inability to pay employees’ salaries in the coming months.
The ministry said in a statement, “What is being circulated is completely false, and His Excellency the Minister of Finance has no statement in this regard,” stressing the ministry’s full commitment to disbursing salaries on their specified dates to employees, retirees, social care, and various security branches, including the salaries of members of the Popular Mobilization Forces, in accordance with the laws and regulations in force.
shafaq.com
