Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kazemi stressed today, Saturday, the need to maximize non-oil resources, form an investment fund for future generations, and work to restore the health of the Iraqi oil sector.
Al-Kazimi said during his visit to the headquarters of the Ministry of Oil this morning and to meet with senior officials in it, that the current government has a reform paper in which discussion is still ongoing to address previous economic and financial errors.
He added, "It is important for oil revenues to be converted into development projects," noting that "the total dependence, at 95% of the budget on oil revenues, is evidence of the failure of previous policies, and we are working to maximize other revenues."
And on the measures taken by the government recently, Al-Kazemi confirmed that his government will not back down from the decision to stop double salaries to achieve justice, and that the government is proceeding with financial and economic reforms to address previous mistakes, indicating that the recent decisions are not a reaction but rather a reform process when the situation in the country reached .
Al-Kazemi plans to announce a list of economic and financial reforms to address the bad conditions in the country due to the low oil prices, and the low levels of financial resources achieved from monthly crude oil sales to unprecedented numbers, which reflected negatively on the lack of approval of the federal budget for Iraq for the current year.
A statement by the Ministry of Oil said that Minister Ihsan Abdul Jabbar indicated that Al-Kazemi’s visit is evidence of interest in developing and supporting the energy sector, pointing out that the Ministry has large projects and plans to develop the oil sector.
He added, "We are working on implementing the government program in a manner that contributes to the optimal investment of the national wealth," stressing work on increasing financial revenues through the adoption of solid mechanisms for the marketing of oil.
With regard to burning gas coming out of oil wells, Abdul-Jabbar made it clear that the ministry had put plans to stop burning gas within a few years and invest it, in a way that meets the local need by concluding a number of contracts with international companies specialized in this field.
The minister continued that work is being done to develop the liquidation sector and improve its quality by opening new refineries and adding new production units, with the aim of covering the local need of oil derivatives and stopping their import despite economic challenges and difficulties, in order to maintain and stabilize oil production and exports.