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London - The World Bank and the European Union signed a 15.6 million euro agreement with the Iraqi government to strengthen oversight institutions, increase public resource management in Iraq and curb the spread of corruption.
The three parties said in a joint statement on Sunday that the agreement includes the implementation of a joint technical work program of the bank costing 15.6 million euros aimed at strengthening the institutions of oversight and accounting of the management of public finances in Iraq and increase the effectiveness of public resources management and strengthen control of the legislative budget and external audit And support anti-corruption efforts.
The initiative, which will be implemented jointly by the World Bank and the European Union, comes to complement the 41.5 million euro fiscal reform program launched by the World Bank in 2017. It also targets the main weaknesses of the public financial management system in Iraq and supports the commitments and objectives of reforming the system. Which are under implementation.
"The EU is committed to the pledge made at the Kuwait donors conference to stand by Iraq in the process of reconstruction and economic and political reform," said EU Ambassador to Iraq Ramon Blakeau after signing the agreement. This project is complementary to existing and supportive efforts to manage public finances. "
He pointed out that the project will focus on coordination between donors and the government and on increasing the effectiveness of managing resources and strengthening supervision and accountability and fighting corruption. He stressed the readiness of the European Union to help Iraq face the challenges of reconstruction and secure a better future for Iraq.
For his part, Secretary-General of the Council of Ministers Mehdi Al-Alak pointed to the importance of this program provided by the European Union and the World Bank in the oversight. He added that the program will enhance the importance of monitoring and adopted by the government in its program.
Support Iraqs fiscal reforms to curb corruption
According to the agreement, the European Union and the World Bank will participate in the implementation of this initiative, which will complement the World Banks $ 41.5 million program, launched in 2017 as the "Modernization of Public Financial Management Systems".
The agreement stresses that "support for reforms in this area is the basis of the EUs cooperation and development policy in Iraq because the proper systems of public finance management are necessary to achieve the appropriate and effective use of the aid provided by donors through formulas based on the systems working for the development of the budget and implementation and control and to achieve the objectives Public policy especially that Iraq is a country rich in resources and medium income high, and transparency and accountability is essential to restore the legitimacy of the institutions of the country and build a social contract with the citizen in the post-conflict period of stability and reconstruction.
The EU will provide the Federal Government of Iraq and the Kurdistan Regional Government with support in a number of areas related to this program through the establishment of a committee to coordinate donors to ensure ownership, integration and reform of reforms, and improve accountability and management of public resources by strengthening the management of salaries and enhancing efficiency and accountability in public procurement State-owned finance, while strengthening oversight of public financial management by improving the regulatory and legal framework, supporting financial transparency and strengthening oversight of the legislative budget and external audit function. Accounts and support anti-corruption efforts.
Transparency Internationals Corruption Perception Index 2017 showed recently that five Arab countries are the most corrupt in the world - Somalia, Syria, Yemen, Sudan and Iraq.
The organization launched the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) in 1995 to become one of the most important publications of Transparency International, and the most prominent global indicator for assessing the spread of corruption in the public sector. |
