Transport Investment Key to Iraq’s Economic Growth:
Minister of Transport Razzaq Muhaibis Al-Saadawi opened the Transport, Aviation and Logistics Services Exhibition (ITL EXPO 2025) on Wednesday, attended by officials and representatives from local and international companies in transport, infrastructure, and logistics.
In his opening remarks, Al-Saadawi stated that investment in the transport sector yields significant economic returns by reducing costs, enhancing trade competitiveness, and improving supply chain efficiency. He described transport as the foundation of any sustainable economic renaissance.
He added that ITL EXPO 2025 represents an important platform for strengthening cooperation between the public and private sectors, encouraging knowledge exchange, and attracting quality investments. Nations that mastered transport systems, he noted, were able to define their economic and political strength.
The Minister outlined key achievements, including the completion of Mosul International Airport, the near completion of Nasiriyah International Airport, and the modernisation of the Iraqi Airways fleet with 13 new aircraft, including Boeing 737 MAX and Dreamliner models. He also confirmed that 78% of the IOSA corrective programme has been completed, paving the way for lifting the European ban on Iraqi Airways.
Al-Saadawi highlighted Iraq’s accession to the international TIR transit system as a major step toward implementing the Development Road project — one of the region’s most strategic initiatives — linking Iraq to global trade through an integrated network of highways, railways, and industrial zones that reduce costs and travel time while creating broad investment opportunities.
He emphasised that the Development Road is not merely a transport corridor but a comprehensive economic and developmental project encompassing modern ports, industrial cities, and investments across eight key sectors: agriculture, industry, trade, tourism, energy, transport, communications, and logistics. The initiative, he said, will create hundreds of thousands of jobs and strengthen Iraq’s non-oil revenues.
The Minister also noted that the ministry is modernising Iraq’s railway network, particularly along the Baghdad-Baiji-Mosul corridor, as part of a broader infrastructure development strategy aligned with sustainable development and environmental goals.
During a panel discussion at the event, Al-Saadawi said the workshops and seminars held with Iraqi and international experts will have a lasting positive impact on national projects and accelerate digital transformation in the transport sector.
He concluded by calling for unity of vision and collective effort to make transport a driver of progress rather than a mere means of passage, saying: “Iraq today is not waiting for the future-it is creating it.”
Al-Saadawi also toured the exhibition halls, where he met participants from both public and private sectors, praising the organisation and partnerships that help establish Iraq as a central logistics hub in the region.
