Shafaq News/ The Iraqi President of the Republic , Barham Saleh stressed on Thursday, that the government of Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi has committed to start the process of "structural reform" in the country,   while the federal budget in Iraq is likely to face a "significant decrease and deficit", he asked for help of the countries of the world in achieving a "investment budget" for a country 40% of its population is "poor".

"Saleh participated today, in the summit meeting on financing sustainable development to address the repercussions of Covid-19 virus, at the invitation of the Secretary-General of the United Nations , António Guterres , Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau and Prime Minister of Jamaica Andrew Holness,” Head of Saleh's media office said a statement received by Shafaq News Agency.

"The challenges we face as an international community are huge and urgent that can be overcome if we make united and concerted efforts", noting that "some people tend to look internally, and let every country solve the problem alone. Although the effect of the virus is local, but the crisis is a global crisis therefore it needs an international response,” the statement quoted Saleh as saying.

"We are fully aware that the road ahead will be long and hard, but we have no choice but perseverance and victory. Otherwise we will fail our people, especially our youth."

"We are still a country in a recovery phase. We have gone through a civil war , violence and terrorism by the so-called Islamic State, but our efforts to rebuild are still fragile. Popular demonstrations in the past autumn and winter, and the tragic victims, are considered as a stark reminder that the patience of the Iraqi people has limits. "

The President stressed that "people are ready to sacrifice their lives for a better and more prosperous future; our mission, as leaders, is to fulfill those aspirations”.

The President of the Republic stressed that "we need transitional mechanisms to bridge the gap so that we can immediately implement fiscal stimulus policies that take us out of closed circles in order to enable the stability of our financial affairs and our economy so that we can counter the effects of Covid-19."

He noted that "the requirements of social distancing have stopped many sectors of our economy," noting that "according to estimates by the World Bank, the number of Iraqis living under the poverty line increased from less than 20% at the end of 2019 to about 40%."

“Iraq was subjected to multiple shocks: the collapse of domestic demand due to the restrictions imposed to combat Covid-19, the sharp drop in oil prices since March and recently the significant reduction in Iraq's oil production by about 23% as part of the OPEC + agreement in April."

"Our dependence on oil imports means that our budget imports have decreased by more than 70% compared to pre-crisis levels, which compels us to take emergency measures to cover basic expenses. We may need as an inevitable outcome of rationing our spending, but even so we may face the possibility of significant budget deficit this year, which will require funding to withdraw from reserves and increase debt. In general, our economy is expected to shrink by about 10% during 2020, with an expected prospect of recovery in 2021. ”

"We hope that the international community will support these efforts, including helping us with economic restructuring and supporting us in achieving our investment budget, which are important efforts to build infrastructure, maintain basic services and create jobs,"

Saleh stressed, "Sustainability and the ability to resist impacts are two main factors for building a better tomorrow for all Iraqis. We must ensure that growth and economic development occur and that this crisis is not allowed to become a choice between people's lives and their livelihoods

French President ,Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Italian Prime Minister ,Giuseppe Conte, World Bank President ,David Malpass and a number of other world leaders participated in this meeting.