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Iraqi Kurdistan: Kurds Bemoan Soaring Cost
of Living
14.7.2007
By Zanko Ahmed in Erbil and Sulaimaniyah
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Residents say low salaries and runaway inflation
means that they can barely make ends meet.
July
14, 2007
Kurdistan region (Iraq)
Sarbast Mohammed finishes his civil service job at 4
pm, grabs a quick bite to eat and hops into his
taxi. He will cruise around for several hours,
seeking passengers whose fares help boost his
income.
Mohammed, 27, works seven days a week to pay his
bills and support he and his wife. He makes 180 US
dollars a month from his government job and about
300 dollars from his work as a cab driver.
The double income plus some minimal revenue from his
wife's small loofah-making business barely covers
Mohammed's rent and utilities, which amount to about
400 dollars a month. The problem is that the
newlyweds rarely see one another. While some couples
in the northeastern city of Sulaimaniyah enjoy
peaceful weekends at the park, Mohammed is in his
taxi until 2am.
"I shouldn't be doing this work, but I have to," he
said. "If I don't do this, we can't survive."
While no official statistics are available, housing,
fuel and consumer costs have jumped sharply in
Sulaimaniyah, a largely safe and growing city, say
observers.
The American Kurdish Society, an organisation that
monitors economic growth in Iraqi Kurdistan,
recently named Sulaimaniyah the most expensive city
in the northern region. Residents complain that they
can barely make ends meet, blaming the regional
government for paying low salaries and not
monitoring inflation in local markets.
Sulaimaniyah's costs are fueled by its prosperity
and growth - but its inflation woes echo those in
the rest of Iraq, where prices of everything from
food to fuel to rents and transportation have soared
in the past year.
According to the International Monetary Fund, IMF,
Iraq's inflation had jumped 65 per cent by the end
of 2006, a hike it attributes to shortages of fuel
and other key commodities. While the Iraqi
government brought down record inflation levels in
the first half of 2007, prices are still 35 to 40
per cent higher than they were a year ago, according
to several economic reports.
Officials and economists in semi-autonomous Iraqi
Kurdistan do not have inflation figures for the
entity but acknowledge that it is a significant
problem for residents there. The Kurdistan Regional
Government estimates that up to a quarter of the
four million people in the region work for the
government, but salaries are as low as 75 dollars
per month.
"The inflation rate increases every day, and prices
vary from one city to another," said Rebeen Rasul,
head of the American Kurdish Society. "In fall and
winter, the inflation rates increase because
transportation is more difficult, while in the past
few months prices have gone up because fuel was more
expensive."
The fuel shortage forces most Iraqis to buy on the
black market, driving up costs for consumers. But
other prices are rising too - fares for private
busses have increased from 25 to 35 cents, and a
kilogramme of lamb has risen from about 5.50 to 7.50
dollars over the last three months.
Mohammad Kareem, an economic professor at the
University of Sulaimaniyah, said the government
needs to monitor businesses to ensure they are not
price-gouging, charging above-market prices. He said
the lack of oversight by the Kurdish authorities is
hindering the region economically.
"The government is not transparent and they don't
give the [inflation] data to experts so that they
can solve the problem," said Kareem.
Officials in Sulaimaniyah have shut down dozens of
shops in an effort to curb price-gouging, but the
cost of living is still too high, residents
complain.
"Last year, we protested so that people's living
conditions would improve, but this year, it only got
worse," said 29-year -old Hadi Ali, who was arrested
in 2006 during a demonstration calling for basic
services and a better cost of living.
Mayor of Sulaimaniyah Zana Hama-Salih said inflation
is a serious concern for which he blames Iraq's free
trade policies. He said the government, not private
companies, should import products to ensure that
goods are available to consumers at lower costs.
Dler Ismail, head of the Kurdistan parliament's
economic committee, said members of parliament are
considering Hama -Salih's proposal. Ismail also said
Kurdistan's new investment law, introduced last
year, will exempt businesses from paying taxes for
five years, which he believes will help lower
prices.
But the authorities will need to prove to a
sceptical public that they are serious about
tackling inflation.
"The government doesn't care what will happen with
this situation," said Star Omar, 43.
He sells clothing in a small shop in downtown Erbil
and says his rent has jumped from 400 to 650 dollars
in just one
year.
"One day, people will lose their patience," he said.
Zanko Ahmed is an IWPR trainee in Sulaimaniyah.
iwpr net
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