The Ministry of Planning has held an important technical meeting focused on how projects are chosen and evaluated, with the goal of making public investment work better and more efficiently.
The meeting was led by the Undersecretary for Technical Affairs, Dr. Maher Hammad Johan. It looked closely at ways to support project selection and evaluation, working in cooperation with Adam Smith International.
According to the Ministry, the discussions were about improving how projects are selected, strengthening public investment management, and making sure all departments are working in the same way. A key part of this effort is connecting risk-based project monitoring with real decision-making and budget planning. This is meant to help ensure that the most important and high-quality projects are given priority.
Marsha Okoye, an adviser at the meeting, explained why this work matters and shared the results of the public investment management assessment. She talked about efforts to unify how sector planning departments and regional and local development units operate. She also highlighted the use of feasibility study checklists that follow the 2025 guide and match international best practices.
Several directors general and technical experts attended the meeting. This comes as part of a wider push to improve Iraq’s public investment system and strengthen long-term planning in line with national policies.
