Publication: Iraq Economic Monitor, Spring 2018: From War to Reconstruction and Economic Recovery
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2018-04
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2018-04-19
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The Iraq Economic Monitor provides an update on key economic developments and policies over the previous six months and presents findings from recent World Bank work on Iraq, placing them in a longer-term and global context and assessing the implications of these developments and other changes in policy regarding the outlook for Iraq. Its coverage ranges from the macro-economy to financial markets to indicators of human welfare and development. Iraq is slowly emerging from the deep economic strains of the last three years, but progress in addressing the legacy of the war against ISIS and the accumulated development deficit from decades of conflict needs to be accelerated. Following the complete liberation from ISIS of all Iraq territory in December 2017, the Government of Iraq (GoI) is putting in place a comprehensive reconstruction package linking immediate stabilization to a long-term vision. The conflict with ISIS and widespread insecurity have created a major humanitarian and economic crisis. Iraq’s growth outlook is expected to improve thanks to a more favorable security environment and gradual pick up of investment for reconstruction, but absent structural reforms, higher growth would be short-lived. The outlook is also subject to significant social and political risks. Lingering political tensions, weak administrative capacity and widespread corruption continue to pose a downside risk and could further limit the government’s reform effort and its capacity to implement investment for reconstruction.
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“World Bank Group. 2018. Iraq Economic Monitor, Spring 2018: From War to Reconstruction and Economic Recovery. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/29688 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
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