On Saturday, economic experts criticized the financial policy of the Central Bank of Iraq. While they expected the dollar to stabilize, their opinions differed about the possibility of a Lebanese scenario in the country.
The professor of public law, Safaa Al-Shammari, stated in the program “The Eighth with Ahmed Al-Tayeb,” which was reported by “Jarida,” that there exists significant confusion in the Central Bank’s financial policy. Recently, the bank recognized the parallel market and stated that supply and demand factors determine the dollar’s value. According to the professor, the government and the Central Bank’s previous statements regarding the parallel market must be corrected.
Al-Shammari stated that the Central Bank has officially recognized the parallel market. As a result, it is impossible to distinguish between the exchange rate of the similar market and the window dollar. Allowing the import of currency will not reduce the increase in demand, and he warns that what is currently happening in Iraq is similar to the economic crisis faced by Lebanon.
“This statement was made by him: ‘The State Council had made it clear in 2011 that importing foreign currency has no legal basis. Sanctions cannot be imposed without proper legal provisions. However, the Central Bank has not provided any explanation regarding the Abu Dhabi meeting’.”
During the same program, the economic expert Ahmed Manaf commented that the government is exploring various solutions to put an end to the dollar crisis. He mentioned that the implementation of the platform has made it easier to legalize import transfers and that transferring through the platform at the official rate takes only seven days. However, he emphasized the importance of adhering to the bank’s procedures regarding the dollar.
Manaf explained that increasing circulation in dollars will reduce demand, stabilizing the dollar at 150,000 dinars. He added that Iraq will not experience the same scenario as Lebanon.
