On January 27 Iraq’s Planning Ministry reported progress in fighting inequality in the country. It said that unemployment dropped from 16% to 14% and poverty went down from 23% to 17%. It claimed this was the result of the government promoting the private sector, new laws to help workers and the expansion of social security.
The problem for the Ministry was that this was not new data. In fact, it came from a 2023 survey.
This is typical for Baghdad which is often an unreliable source for news.
Iraq is structurally incapable of making large reductions in unemployment because it has a state centered economy. The government hinders the development of private business through excessive and often contradictory and confusing regulations. Workers also prefer civil service jobs because they are more secure and offer better pay and pensions. Not only that but the ruling parties usually push for an expansion of the public field so that it can be manipulated for profit and patronage.
SOURCES
Salem, Amr, “Poverty rate significantly declines in Iraq,” Iraqi News, 11/4/24
Xinhua, “Iraq sees drop in unemployment, poverty rates,” 1/27/25
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