ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Iraqi finance ministry said on Saturday that they will need at least one more meeting after discussing civil servant salaries with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) delegation in Baghdad.
Teams from the federal and regional governments “have been working since the morning and late into the night to audit and verify the data concerning the salaries of retirees, contract employees, and social protection beneficiaries, to ensure their proper and accurate disbursement,” read a statement from the federal finance ministry.
“Following the meeting, the minister emphasized the need for another meeting at the Ministry of Finance to directly audit and verify the lists, as well as the annual and monthly costs, ensuring that the necessary adjustments are made as quickly as possible,” the statement added, referring to Minister Taif Sami.
The KRG’s interior ministry had been hopeful their work would wrap up soon. The meetings that began on Friday continued on Saturday “to resolve technical issues, and they are expected to complete their work in the near future,” read a statement from the ministry earlier on Saturday.
KRG Finance Minister Awat Sheikh Janab told reporters on Friday that their discussions were held in a “positive atmosphere.”
Erbil and Baghdad are discussing amendments to the previously approved 2025 federal budget law and obstacles to paying the Kurdistan Region’s civil servant salaries.
The KRG has been working to redirect funds from its share of the federal budget to address salary shortfalls that persisted throughout last year. It has failed to pay the salaries of its civil servants on time and in full for a decade due to a financial crisis that worsened when its oil exports were halted in March 2023.
