Baghdad: The Parliamentary Finance Committee has denied the existence of a fixed ceiling for the financial deficit in the federal budget, stressing that revenues and expenditures have not yet been fully reviewed, making it premature to determine the total deficit. Committee Chairman, MP Atwan Al-Atwani, told the National Iraqi News Agency (NINA) that “the Ministry of Finance, in coordination with other ministries, is currently working on addressing new obligations after including stalled projects and decongestion initiatives in the 2025 budget.”

According to National Iraqi News Agency, Al-Atwani added that “current oil revenues are sufficient to cover the salaries of employees and retirees in both the federal government and the Kurdistan Region, although irregular cash flow may sometimes cause delays in salary disbursements.” Al-Atwani reaffirmed that “the rights of employees and retirees are fully secured,” noting that “once the budget schedules are approved, salary increases and promotions will be released and implemented retroactively from the date of the relevant official orders.”