Baghdad, -The Ministry of Planning chaired governmental negotiations on development projects between the Iraqi and German governments within the framework of continued cooperation between Iraq and its international partners.
The ministry stated in a statement: “Within the framework of ongoing cooperation between Iraq and its international partners, governmental negotiations took place today in the Ministry of Planning regarding development projects between the governments of the Republic of Iraq and the Federal Republic of Germany, which were organized by the Department of International Cooperation.”
The Undersecretary of the Ministry of Planning for Technical Affairs, Maher Hammad Johan, explained in a statement: “Iraq has achieved a distinguished stage thanks to the good relations with various international organizations, especially with the German side, as more than 80% of the displaced were returned to their areas, indicating the presence of challenges related to food security and climate change and its major impacts on our lives and on our country in particular, which may be reflected in the levels of severe national challenges, as Iraq is one of the most affected by climate changes at the national level.”
He stressed: “Iraq needs great effort and support from all friends to complete the infrastructure and address priority issues related to unemployment and poverty levels, and many issues of common interest.”
For his part, the head of the German negotiating delegation, Max Mellen, said: “This meeting represents a distinct reflection between the Iraqi and German governments, related to a number of important issues, as there are close ties between the two countries,” explaining: This meeting came to achieve more progress by strengthening partnerships, and that joint action plans will be the basis of our cooperation in the coming years.”
He confirmed the ability to improve and strengthen relations in the field of development. Noting that Germany has supported Iraq since 2014 with an amount of more than (3) billion dollars, for humanitarian aid and reconstruction, and this makes us the second largest donor, which reflects the extent of rapprochement between the two sides, noting that the bilateral negotiations will focus on European commitments, and the conditions for the current implementation of cooperation and development, and this is what makes these negotiations fruitful and constructive.
He added, “There is a very important issue related to the economic paradoxes of youth and marginalized groups, and this is something we are very focused on in the German government.”
German Chargé d’Affaires Annette Smach stressed the importance of Iraq as a very important partner in the Middle East and her government’s commitment to continuing to provide its full cooperation and support to the government of Iraq and reconciliation after many years of displacement and economic and development crises, adding, “Germany is committed to addressing the problems that are being highlighted on how to create job opportunities, seeking to meet the aspirations of young people, and how to provide basic services and provide job opportunities.
She revealed that an amount of (40) million euros had been provided as new funding for this year, in addition to the funding that we had committed to in the amount of (75) million euros.
The negotiations included a number of topics, including: general policy on the reality of German-Iraqi cooperation, the results achieved, the remaining challenges and prospects for future cooperation, as well as the challenges and opportunities of implementing projects in Iraq, in addition to development cooperation.
Priority areas were also discussed, which included: (sound and inclusive societies), sustainable economic development, training and employment with a future focus for German-Iraqi cooperation, as well as climate and energy and a just transition.
The negotiation session was attended by representatives of: the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Finance, Labor and Social Affairs, Youth and Sports, Environment, the Prime Minister’s Office, the Central Bank of Iraq, the General Secretariat of the Council of Ministers and the Federal Integrity Commission, in addition to a representative of the Kurdistan Regional Government, as well as representatives of the German government.
Source: National Iraqi News Agency
