Date: 3 June 2021
Time: 14:00 - 15:00 (UTC+1)
Speakers: Toby Dodge, Ahmed Tabaqchali, and Tawfiq Tabbaa

On 10 October 2021, Iraq will hold sixth national elections since regime change in 2003. They are being held early because of the Thawrat Tishreen, (October Revolution) mass demonstrations which saw tens of thousands of young people take to the streets of Baghdad and most central and southern cities in 2019 and 2020.

They caught a widespread public mood when they damned Iraq’s ruling elite and the political system they preside over, critiquing the high levels of corruption, institutional weakness and societal alienation it created. Although prime minister Adel Abdul Mahdi, was removed over 600 were killed when the protest movement was suppressed by the government and its allied militias.

As Iraq enters another election season, its state institutions remain enfeebled by politically sanctioned corruption. Opposition activists are regularly assassinated by militias which act with impunity. Although rising oil prices have temporarily suspended the economic crisis, the state payroll is heavily overstaffed with civil servants who are employed because of their affiliations to political parties rather than their ability to deliver much needed basic services.

The briefing will address:

• Domestic politics 
• Security
• Foreign Relations
• Macro-economy and business climate
• Regulatory/legal update on doing business with particular focus on oil and gas

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