ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The federal government and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) have redirected funds from the Region’s budget share to address salary shortfalls, with civil servants having gone nearly two months without pay.
“The technical team of the Kurdistan Region’s finance ministry has successfully resolved the issue of transferring funds from the allocations of the Region's share to increase the amount allocated for salaries,” the KRG announced in a statement on Tuesday.
Civil servants in the Kurdistan Region and employees in disputed areas such as Kirkuk, whose payroll is managed by the KRG, have not received their salaries for nearly two months.
During last week’s parliamentary session on Wednesday Iraq’s Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani told the lawmakers that the federal budget allocation for the Kurdistan Region’s civil servant salaries has been depleted, adding that increasing the funds would require a reallocation from another budget section.
Rebaz Hamlan, federal government’s deputy finance minister, said in a Facebook post on Monday that the unpaid salaries for October and November would be disbursed after reaching an agreement with the federal government to reallocate funds to increase the salary budget and address shortfalls.
Hamlan also noted that they sent the December payroll list for KRG employees earlier in the day to Iraq’s finance ministry for auditing.
“The salaries will be distributed as soon as possible,” Hamlan said.
Baghdad has allocated 761 billion dinars ($580 million) for the October salaries of the KRG's civil servants. However, the Kurdish government did not accept the payment, holding out hope that its efforts to secure the full amount would succeed. The KRG has said that it needs over 900 billion dinars (about $687 million) monthly to cover its payroll.
During the Wednesday session, Sudani suggested that the resumption of the Kurdistan Region’s oil exports, which have been stalled since March last year, could help resolve ongoing issues. He also remarked that the KRG needs to comply with its obligations, particularly regarding the handover of non-oil revenues to the federal government, adding that Erbil has failed to comply so far.
