“Fifty to 60 French companies were supposed to visit the Kurdistan Region this month, but due to the Iran-Israel war and the instability of the regional airspace, it was postponed a bit. Now we are in contact with the French consulate [in Erbil] to determine an appropriate time,” Bargasht Akreyi, spokesperson for the Kurdistan Region’s Board of Investment, told Rudaw on Monday.
The initiative is expected to create thousands of job opportunities and pave the way for French brands to establish a presence in the Region.
Akreyi further stated that the expected investment of French companies in the Kurdistan Region "will lead to the creation of thousands of job opportunities."
The companies are from the agriculture, energy, technology, and tourism sectors, according to Akreyi. They are set to meet with local companies in the same fields to foster mutual understanding.
"Several famous French brands are set to open branches of their companies in the Kurdistan Region,” he noted.
Officials and business leaders from Iraq, the Kurdistan Region, and France met in Paris in May for a major forum to boost trade and investment, with Baghdad and Erbil pushing to expand international partnerships by presenting the country as stable, attractive destination for foreign companies.
The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has been stepping up efforts to diversify the economy by strengthening the private sector.
As of May 2024, French investments in the Kurdistan Region stood at around $3 billion across multiple sectors, according to France’s Consul General in Erbil Yann Braem.
The bond between France and the Kurdish people dates back to the 1980s, when Danielle Mitterrand, then First Lady of France, became a vocal advocate for Kurds oppressed under the regime of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein.
Mitterand played an instrumental role in the establishment of the no-fly zone over the Kurdistan Region after the 1991 Gulf War, providing protection that enabled Kurds to establish autonomy.
She remains affectionately known as the “Mother of the Kurds” and inaugurated the first Kurdish parliament in 1992.
France was also among the first nations to open a consulate in Erbil after the fall of Saddam Hussein’s regime in 2003, and played a critical role in supporting Kurdish and Iraqi forces during the war against the Islamic State (ISIS) that began in 2014.
Solin Hamadamin contributed to this article.
