Iraq must address national crises or risk 'extreme' poverty, UN says

Years of neglect by government caused rise in economic and health issues in Iraq

A man clad in mask due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic stands next to sprinklers along Sinak street in Iraq's capital Baghdad on August 9, 2020, to cool off due to extremely high temperature riseShow more

Iraq must address its crises, including the containment of the coronavirus pandemic, or the country will head into "extreme" poverty, the UN said on Tuesday.

The country faces the same dilemma as much of the world - whether to ease restrictions to help economic activity, or maintain a lockdown to avoid the virus’s spread.

A report by the UN development program conveyed that years of economic, environmental, political, societal and security, had a lasting impact on the country which gave rise to the current coronavirus pandemic.

“For Iraq, decades of conflict have hampered the country’s stability and stunted its prosperity. The onset of Covid-19 and the oil crisis has exacerbated existing fragilities in the country,” Resident Representative of UNDP Iraq, Zena Ali Ahmad, said in a statement.

“In fragile countries, social safety nets are weak and insufficiently address the basic needs of the most vulnerable groups in society. This ultimately results in deeper social inequalities,”  she said.

Plummeting prices for oil, which accounts for almost all Iraq’s revenue, are already squeezing the economy, forcing the government to mull cuts to its vast public sector payroll.

“Iraq’s fragility is not a result of one single event; it involves a number of intricate factors that have collectively impacted every aspect of the country’s development, and these must be closely considered when charting the path to Iraq’s recovery from the pandemic,” Ms Ahmad said.

The country has recorded 156,995 coronavirus cases and a death rate of near 6,0000 amid a rise in daily cases.

The Health Ministry recorded nearly 3,400 new cases and 67 deaths over the last 24 hours.

Yet, despite the rise in cases the country has not reached its coronavirus peak, the deputy Minister of Health Hazim Al Jumaili said on Monday.

"This indicates that the citizens are not abiding by the instructions of the Health Ministry and the High Committee for Health and National Safety," Mr Al Jumaili said in a statement.

The Higher Committee for Health of National Safety, that oversees the crisis and is headed by Prime Minister Mustafa Al Kadhimi, is expected to hold a meeting at the end of the week to discuss the health restrictions during the upcoming Holy month of Muharram.

Authorities have imposed a partial nationwide curfew since the outbreak of the pandemic in early March.

The Committee said on Tuesday that it will extend the curfew till August 15, after that a partial curfew will continue every Thursday, Friday and Saturday.