Baghdad – IA
Today, Tuesday, the Council of Ministers issued a number of decisions, including approving the draft economic reform law and sending it to the State Council, and granting ownership of the lands previously allocated to the 250 displaced families from the Salin area in Basra Governorate.
The Prime Minister’s Media Office said in a statement received by the (INA): “Prime Minister Muhammad Shia’ al-Sudani chaired, today, the fifty-second regular session of the Council of Ministers,” noting that “during the session, the general situation in the country was discussed, and The most prominent economic and service files included within the government program, discussing topics on the agenda, and taking directives and decisions regarding them.”
He added that within the framework of the government’s support for the sports sector, and with the aim of supporting the journey of our national team in the Asian Cup Championship, which will begin next month in Qatar, the Prime Minister directed the Ministry of Transport to operate discounted flights for Iraqis wishing to attend the tournament, and who have official cards approved by the organizing committee.
He also directed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to communicate with the Qatari side in order to facilitate obtaining entry visas for them.
In the context of the session, the Council of Ministers agreed – according to the statement – to grant the ownership of the lands previously allocated to them outside the borders of the municipality of Basra by the displaced and displaced families from the (Salin) area in Basra Governorate, numbering (250), at the real price, as an exception to the public bidding procedures stipulated in Law on the Sale and Rent of State Funds (21 of 2013), amended.
In the context of continued government support for youth, the Council of Ministers agreed to amend Paragraph (29) of Council of Ministers Resolution (23465 of 2023) regarding youth proposals, to become as follows:
-Grant funding for the winning programs will be from the amount of 5 billion dinars, allocated to the Department of Non-Governmental Organizations, in the General Secretariat of the Council of Ministers; To support volunteer organizations and teams.
The statement continued, “As part of the Prime Minister’s directives to proceed with the completion of projects whose commencement was delayed, including the Baghdad Metro Project, the Council agreed to include (preparing designs and supervising the implementation of the Baghdad Metro Project) in the investment budget tables of the Baghdad Municipality for the year 2023, at a total cost of (913804000000).” Dinar, after completing the listing requirements by the Baghdad Municipality and confirming that the investor will subsequently bear the full cost of the project.”
In the energy file, the recommendation of the Ministerial Council for Energy (23101 T) for the year 2023 regarding approving the recommendation of the opinion committee in the Ministry of Electricity was approved, according to the following:
Authorizing the Minister of Electricity, or his authorized representative, to sign a memorandum of principles of cooperation between the Ministry of Electricity and Toyota Tsusho Corporation, in line with the Ministry’s plan and the available financial allocations.
Also in the energy file, the Ministerial Council for Energy’s recommendation (23098) for the year 2023 was approved, according to the following:
1. The Ministry of Oil/Basra Oil Company’s share in the West Qurna/1 field will be financed in operation, based on what was stated in Council of Ministers Resolution (2 of 2022) in the amount of $250 million, through the allocation of quantities of crude oil exported by the Oil Marketing Company. Their amounts are deposited in a bank account opened for this purpose (outside Iraq), and this is regulated by a special agreement with the new main operator of the field (Basra Oil Company).
2. The field is one of the components of the petroleum licensing rounds project included in the investment plan, which is financed in kind with crude oil. Therefore, the restrictive settlement for the amount indicated in Paragraph (1) mentioned above is organized from the project allocations included in the Federal General Budget Law (13 of 2023) and with the same mechanism. Followed by the Ministry of Finance in conducting settlement restrictions for other oil fields.
3. The profit wages, administrative charges, and benefits resulting from its participation in the service contract for the West Qurna/1 field will be for the benefit of the Basra Oil Company, similar to the company’s share in the Zubair oil field.
4. Signing a share sale agreement between ExxonMobil and Basra Oil Company, which entails paying the share sale price after making the final settlement in kind with crude oil.
The Council of Ministers approved – according to the statement – to increase the capital of the General Company for Private Transport Management to (30301762716) dinars, instead of its current capital of (675) million dinars, with an increase of (29626762716) dinars, based on the Public Companies Law (22 of 1997). amended, and the Ministry of Transport shall take the necessary measures to implement what was stated in Paragraph (1) mentioned above.
As part of the governmental approach to supporting antiquities and heritage, the recommendation of the Ministerial Council for Human Development (23037 B) for the year 2023 was approved, which includes approval to refer the projects of rehabilitating the Nineveh Wall and the Kirkuk Citadel (among the projects of rehabilitating and preserving antiquities) to reputable companies accredited by specialized UNESCO, adopting a method Direct invitation, as an exception to the contracting methods specified in the Government Contracts Implementation Instructions (2 of 2014) due to the specialized nature of these projects.
It was also approved to correct the procedures undertaken by the Babylon Governorate and to prepare a contract formula, regarding the project to rehabilitate the road linking the Baghdad Governorate and the Holy Karbala Governorate, to follow the fundamental procedures for disbursing the due entitlements to the two implementing companies (Sarh Babel Company and Qimma Al-Hussam Al-Arabi Company), with the contract including the responsibility of the entity. The Babil Governorate undertakes to inventory the executed works and review their conformity with the required technical specifications, according to the schedule of quantities prepared in advance, the reality of the implementation status, and the hidden armor reports, with the support of the relevant technical committees.
The Council of Ministers approved the recommendations of the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research regarding returning the headquarters of the Union of Arab Scientific Research Councils to Iraq, as follows:
1. The Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research prepares the headquarters of the Union of Arab Scientific Research Councils in Iraq, by carrying out restoration and rehabilitation of the building, and completing furnishing requirements, allowing it to carry out its activity, and from the revenues of the Higher Education Fund at the Ministry’s headquarters.
2. Instructing the Ministry of Finance that Iraq’s contributions be 50% of the annual federal budget, starting from the fiscal year 2025.
3. Instructing the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to facilitate the procedures for employees of the Union of Arab Scientific Research Councils.
4. Private universities provide the necessary support to the Union in accordance with the Private Higher Education Law No. 25 of 2016.
According to the statement, the Council of Ministers continued to discuss other topics on the agenda, and the following decisions were taken:
First: Approval of the draft economic reform law and sending it to the State Council; To have it properly audited, then return it to the General Secretariat of the Council of Ministers. To refer it directly to the House of Representatives, based on the provisions of the Constitution, taking into account the observations presented during the hearing.
Secondly: Amending the name (Baghdad International Film Festival/First Session), stated in Council of Ministers Resolution (23098 of 2023), to become the name (First Youth Cinema Festival of 2023).
Third: Approval of what came from the Ministry of Interior, regarding the project to establish, equip and install an integrated camera system, and the costs of the cameras will be covered from the revenues of the border crossings (50%) share of Baghdad Governorate, in accordance with the contract concluded between the implementing company and the Ministry of Interior.
Fourth: reallocate an amount to the Ministry of Health; To finance contracts for medicines, medical devices, and medical supplies, based on the provisions of the Federal Budget Law (13 of 2023), retrieved from the International Agreement on Vaccines (GAVI).