TNT:
Tishwash: Iraq Falls in Prosperity Index
Iraq has fallen two place in this year’s Legatum Institute Prosperity Index, ranking in 140th place out of the 166 countries measured.
The Index consists of 12 pillars of prosperity, split into 67 discrete policy-focussed elements, and is underpinned by 299 indicators.
Denmark, Sweden and Norway took the top three positions.
The least prosperous country is listed as Yemen, followed by the Central African Republic and Afghanistan. More here. Link
THE LEGATUM PROSPERITY INDEX 2023
Creating the pathways from poverty to prosperity
The Legatum prosperity Index™ is a tool for transformation, offering a unique insight into how prosperity is forming and evolving across the world. Leaders around the world can use it to help set their agendas for growth and development.
View the 2023 Rankings TableDownload the 2023 Legatum Prosperity Index™ report
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Tishwash: With a financial surplus of “a quarter”… 161 trillion dinars, the Iraqi state’s revenues in 2022
The Iraqi Ministry of Finance announced, on Monday, that the state’s revenues during the year 2022 exceeded 161 trillion dinars, with a financial surplus of more than 40 trillion dinars.
According to the accounts of the Iraqi state for the month of December for the fiscal year 2022, which was seen by Shafaq News Agency, the contribution of oil to the federal budget amounted to 95%, which indicates that the rentier economy is the basis of Iraq’s general budget.
And the financial accounts showed that the total revenues until last December amounted to 161 trillion and 697 billion and 436 million and 746 thousand and 338 dinars, indicating that the total expenditures with advances amounted to 119 trillion and 805 billion and 546 million dinars.
According to the finance table, oil revenues amounted to 154 trillion and 38 billion and 649 million and 122 thousand dinars, which constitute 95% of the general budget, while non-oil revenues amounted to 7 trillion and 657 billion and 787 million and 624 thousand dinars, indicating that the budget surplus for the past year 2022 amounted to 41 One trillion and 891 billion and 890 million dinars, equivalent to 31.9 billion dollars.
For his part, financial expert Muhammad al-Hassani stressed, in an interview with Shafaq News agency, the need for the government to accelerate a “comprehensive economic revolution by diversifying economic sectors to reduce imports and benefit from human capital and labor, in which young people constitute nearly 60% to eliminate unemployment and poverty.” in Iraq”.
He added that “all the Gulf oil countries tended to diversify their economy, and therefore the impact of oil on their economy has become a small percentage of their budget,” pointing out that “successive governments of the Iraqi state did not develop effective solutions for that and relied on the budget to bridge public expenditures without paying attention to investments and developing the sector.” private”.
The Advisor to the Prime Minister for Financial Affairs, Mazhar Muhammad Salih, confirmed in March 2021, in an interview with Shafaq News agency, that the reasons for the economy to remain rentier are due to wars and the imposition of siege during the past era, and what we are witnessing today of political conflicts, which led to the dispersal of economic resources.
And the continuation of the Iraqi state relying on oil as the sole source of the general budget puts the country in danger from the global crises that occur from time to time and which are affected by oil prices, which makes Iraq tend every time to cover the deficit by borrowing from abroad or internally, and thus indicates the inability effective management of state funds, and the inability to find alternative financing solutions. link
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Tishwash: Al-Sudani is discussing with the World Bank delegation ways of joint cooperation and support for the government’s plans
Prime Minister Mohamed Shiaa Al-Sudani received, on Monday, the Regional Director for the Levant Countries Region at the World Bank, Jean-Christophe Carré, and his accompanying delegation.
During the meeting, they discussed various aspects of cooperation between Iraq and the World Bank, ways to support the growing indicators of the Iraqi economy, and government efforts in this context, as well as an emphasis on cooperation in the field of banking reform adopted by the government, and areas for enhancing progress in addressing service priorities and reform pursued by it. government programme.
The meeting discussed, according to a statement by Al-Sudani’s office, which Mawazine News received, “opportunities for financial cooperation in supporting social protection programs that have witnessed a comprehensive expansion, as well as areas of supporting the transport sector in Iraq, and government plans to expand its infrastructure.” link
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Tishwash: Global Gold: Central banks buy 30 tons of the yellow metal, and Iraq maintains its rank
Today, Sunday, the World Gold Council announced that global central banks have bought 30 tons of gold, while noting that Iraq has maintained its global rank.
In its latest schedule for the month of March 2023, which was seen by “Al-Iqtisad News”, the Council said, “The global central banks added during the month of January an amount of 30 net tons of gold to the global international reserves, up by 16% from the previous month,” indicating That “sales of gold in the same period amounted to 12 tons.”
And she added, “The Turkish Central Bank bought 23 tons of gold, the Chinese Central Bank also bought 15 tons of gold, and Kazakhstan bought 4 tons,” noting that “the Central Bank of Uzbekistan was the only one who made the sale, at 12 tons.”
He added, “Iraq maintained its rank of 30 globally out of 100 countries listed in the table with the largest gold reserves, after it rose ten ranks in July by purchasing 33.9 tons of gold, bringing its gold possession to 130.3 tons, which represents 8.6% of the rest of its other reserves.”
Globally, according to the table, the United States of America still leads the rest of the countries with the largest possession of gold in the world, with 8,133 thousand tons, followed by Germany with 3,355 thousand tons, and then Italy came with 2,451 thousand tons, while Mauritania ranked 100th with 1 ton, preceded by El Salvador with 1.4 tons.
On June 27, Iraq announced the purchase of new quantities of gold, approximately 34 tons, an increase of 35% over what was in its possession.
It is noteworthy that the World Gold Council, which is based in the United Kingdom, has extensive experience and deep knowledge of the factors causing market change, and its members consist of the largest and most advanced gold mining companies in the world Link
