MÎHRÎBAN SELAM KAKAYÎ

Halabja- In June, the Iraqi parliament approved a budget of 199 trillion dinars ($153 billion) for 2023, 2024 and 2025 to be spent on a growing public wage bill and development projects to improve services and rebuild infrastructure ruined by neglect and war. The Kurdistan Region will receive more than 18 trillion dinars ($19 billion) of this amount. Only 3% of this amount has been allocated for women’s economic empowerment.

Irad Manouchehr, an investigative journalist based in Iraq, criticizes the amount allocated for women. “The budget of 199 trillion dinars for the next three years was approved by the Iraqi parliament. What we should discuss is if this budget has been allocated based on gender equality,” she told NuJINHA.

‘Women are ignored’

Noting that taxes and unemployment are an important problem in Iraq and in the Kurdistan region, she said, “Women's labor force participation is only 2%. A higher share of the budget is allocated to the military. The amount allocated to social assistance is only 3 percent of the budget. This amount cannot meet the needs of the poor. Women are always ignored in discussions on budget.”

Education of girls

“Most countries allocate 23% of their budgets to empower women,” Irad Manouchehr said, “The percentage of girls and women in education is very low. 10 out of 100 girls do not go to school after graduating from primary school. The literacy rate has been declining and one out of four girls become the victims of child marriage due to financial difficulties. the amount allocated for women’s economic empowerment should be more.