According to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts, Iraq’s GDP is anticipated to reach 220.00 USD billion by the end of 2021. According to our econometric models, Iraq’s GDP will trend at 245.00 USD billion in 2022.
Iraq has what kind of economy?
Iraq is a Middle Eastern country bordering the Persian Gulf. Iran, Jordan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and Turkey are all neighbors. Iran is strategically located at the head of the Persian Gulf, on the Shatt al Arab waterway. The Tigris and Euphrates rivers, which flow from northwest to southeast, traverse through the middle of Iraq. The government is a parliamentary republic, with the president as the chief of state and the prime minister as the head of government. Iraq has a mixed economic system, with some individual liberty and weak centralized economic planning and government regulation. Iraq belongs to the League of Arab States (Arab League).
Is Iraq a developing country?
During the Cold War, the term “Third World” was coined. It was a term that was used to identify countries that were not part of the Communist Bloc or NATO. The First World included countries such as Canada, the United States, Western Europe, and South Korea. China, the Soviet Union, and Cuba were all considered Second World countries. This concept was used to divide the world’s countries into three fundamental groupings based on their economic and political divisions.
The term “third world” has been less popular after the demise of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War. Nowadays, we use phrases like developing countries. Due to the fact that it no longer represents the current economic and political reality of the world, the concept has grown more obsolete. Is Iraq, then, a Third-World country?
Yes, Iraq is a developing country. The country was regarded a second-world country in the 1960s and 1970s due to its stability and safety, as well as its robust economy as evidenced by its gross national income. It was also a member of several international committees. However, during the Gulf Wars, the countries quickly lost their standing, and the phrase “third world” started to be associated with them.
Iraq has gone through some difficult times in recent years, evolving from a country with a lot of potential to one that is battling to maintain its unity. The current status of the Iraqi people is most comparable to that of struggling African countries and portions of the Middle East such as Somalia and Yemen.
Why is Iraq’s unemployment rate so high?
Iraqis have had to endure tremendous economic hardships due to years of government instability and a decade of war. The typical Iraqi has been the most affected by the economy due to a lack of infrastructure and only the beginnings of a stable administration. Here are some things you should know about Iraqi unemployment.
- Iraq’s unemployment rate was 16 percent in 2016. Iraq’s unemployment rate has been alarmingly stable throughout the last decade, with 2014 being the lowest year, with a 15% unemployment rate.
- Iraq’s present population of 34 million people is expected to grow to 50 million by 2030.
- The Iraqi government employs 40% of the population, yet only 48% of those employment are located in the cities.
- Although half of Iraq’s population is under the age of 19, the youth population (ages 14-24) is disproportionately affected by the country’s economic troubles, which have resulted in unemployment. Unemployment affects 18% of young people.
- The oil sector generates 91% of the government’s revenue, although only 1% of Iraqis work in it.
- Because of the mounting tensions in Iraq with the Islamic State, oil corporations are started to withdraw from a number of their installations there. Chevron, the second-largest oil firm in the United States, withdrew two of its oil blocks in 2015. Exxon Mobil, the world’s largest oil firm, withdrew three of its six oil blocks in Kurdistan in December. This type of abrupt exit from Iraq results in a loss of money for the government, as well as the halting of other corporations’ investments. All of these issues have a significant impact on Iraqi unemployment.
- Kurdistan is home to five million Iraqis and is one of the poorest regions of the country. Kurds were impacted in 2015 when 700,000 people lost their jobs.
- The Iraqi government has made an effort to reduce poverty levels. The Ministry of Planning launched a program targeted at eradicating poverty in 2015, which included a five-year plan to reduce poverty to 10%. The MoP announced that its plan had failed at the end of that year, and no more attempts have been made thereafter.
- The ever-increasing flow of refugees has put a strain on Iraq’s already-struggling economy. Due to clashes with the Islamic State, two million people had been displaced across Iraq as of 2015.
Iraq clearly requires a new strategy to aid in the recovery of its economy. Hopefully, action will be taken before the country deteriorates further.
Is Iraq the world’s richest country?
In 2021, Iraq is ranked #80 among the world’s poorest countries. Iraq was placed 83rd in the richest countries in the world for the year 2020, according to Shafaq News / Global Finance magazine, which specializes in classifying countries around the world. The State of Qatar was ranked first.
Is there any oil in Iraq that the US owns?
Iraqi capital Baghdad – While the US military has legally completed its occupation of Iraq, ExxonMobil, BP, and Shell remain among the world’s major oil companies.
Royal Dutch Shell clinched a $17 billion flaring gas contract on November 27, 38 months after announcing its pursuit of a major gas agreement in southern Iraq.
Three days later, Emerson, a US-based energy company, placed a bid for a contract to operate Iraq’s massive Zubair oil field, which is estimated to store eight million barrels of oil.
Emerson was won a contract earlier this year to deliver crude oil metering systems and other equipment for a new oil terminal in Basra, which is now under construction in the Persian Gulf, and the business is installing control systems at Hilla and Kerbala power plants.
BP is already developing Iraq’s supergiant Rumaila oil field, and Royal Dutch Shell is developing Iraq’s other supergiant deposit, Majnoon oil field. Both fields are in Iraq’s south.
Iraq has 112 billion barrels of oil reserves, second only to Saudi Arabia, according to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). Due to decades of US-led warfare and economic sanctions, the EIA believes that up to 90% of the country remains undiscovered.
Is gold mined in Iraq?
From 2000 to 2021, Iraq’s gold reserves averaged 37.09 tonnes, with a high of 96.42 tonnes in the fourth quarter of 2020 and a low of 0 tonnes in the second quarter of 2000.