ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - People with criminal records are barred from working as taxi drivers in the Kurdistan Region under a government initiative requiring driver identification cards and background checks to regulate the sector, the Kurdistan Region’s transport minister said Sunday.
In an interview with Rudaw’s Hiwa Jamal, Ano Jawhar said the initiative was introduced under the Kurdistan Region’s ninth cabinet as part of efforts to regulate the taxi sector by introducing driver identification cards, official logos and numbered stickers for taxis across the region.
“Anyone with a history of crime, theft or harassment will no longer be eligible to work as a taxi driver,” Jawhar said, adding that applicants must obtain clearance from police stations, local chieftains, Asayish (security) offices, anti-crime departments and the criminal records department before being issued an identification card.
The minister said there are more than 70,000 registered taxis across the Kurdistan Region, adding that only a very small number of applicants were disqualified due to issues in their personal records. According to figures received by the ministry, he said, “problems involving citizens in the taxi sector have now decreased significantly.”
Jawhar also said the taximeter devices would be equipped with GPS technology as part of the initiative, which security agencies could use to monitor vehicles under judicial orders.
Responding to taxi drivers' concerns that the system could track their movements even when they use their vehicles for personal purposes, he said the courts would carry out all security-related monitoring in accordance with the law.
The measures are part of a broader Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) initiative launched to regulate the taxi sector across the Region. The project includes issuing identification cards to drivers, introducing official logos and numbered stickers for taxis, and installing taximeters to help regulate fares.
The ministry says the measures are intended to improve oversight of the sector and address problems involving taxi services.
