Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and his main rival for the top position, Ayad Allawi, met on Tuesday to discuss a resolution to the ongoing parliamentary stalemate. This was only the second meeting between the two men since the inconclusive 7^th March election.

While this was welcome news, Ali al-Dabbagh, a spokesman for the prime minister, stressed that no deals were reached; he did, however, describe the meeting as “positive and good”. We’ll keep you updated on developments as they unfold.

Meanwhile, despite the political uncertainty, business goes on throughout Iraq. Our stories in recent days cover everything from rural tourism initiatives to urban monorail contracts, and from micro-finance to some detailed analysis of trading on the Iraqi stock market.

We can expect to see increasing activity in all areas of the economy as the task of commercialising Iraq’s energy reserves gets into full swing.

Meanwhile, following our announcement last week that we had exceeded 6,000 subscribers to our weekly newsletter – with more signing up this week, by the way – we have just brought out our simplified rate card for advertisers. Just click here to find out more about how Iraq Business News can raise the profile of your business.

And for specific advice on doing business in Iraq, why not contact Gavin Jones at Upper Quartile and Adrian Shaw at AAIB.

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A waterfall resort in northern Erbil province is expected to be turned into a modern tourist destination after it was neglected of late due to drought, according to a source reported by AK News on Saturday.

“Soon, Gali Ali Bag Waterfall resort will be renovated on a modern and new design through the private sector initiative. Tourist cottages, restaurants, and huts will be constructed around the waterfall”, according to Burhan Mustafa, director of Soran tourism.

The tourism department in Soran district, north of Erbil, is planning to re-design all the resorts and tourist destination in the area.

Reuters reports that Iraq’s city of Najaf has awarded a Canadian company a $600 million contract to build the country’s first monorail.

Anwar al-Haboobi, a member of the Najaf investment committee, told Reuters the project will be only the second of its kind in the Middle East after Dubai. The contract was awarded to TransGlobim International (Globim), a privately-owned Canadian consortium.

The monorail is one of a number of large-scale infrastructure projects discussed by Iraqi officials since the fall of Saddam Hussein, including a plan for a multi-billion dollar Baghdad metro, none of which has yet been built. Najaf, one of Shi’ite Islam’s holiest sites, hosts hundreds of thousands of pilgrims at rites several times a year, jamming its mediaeval streets.

“This project will ease the transport crisis and the clogged streets in the province, especially during the blessed days of rituals,” Haboobi said.

The Najaf monorail project will be finished in three years and be carried out in two stages, Haboobi said. The Canadian company will build a power plant to run the train, he added.

TransGlobim lists the following specifications:

* 37 km (of equivalent single track) monorail linking the three major mosques in Najaf; Imam Ali, Kufa, and Sahla, and linking the two main bus depots

* Next phase will link the monorail to the new Najaf airport and further extension within the city of Najaf

* Project entails finance, survey, design, construction, and operating the line

* Concession period – 30 years

* All guideway components will be pre-cast and assembled on site

* Initially 5-6 minute headway between trains, moving to 2-3 minutes in heavy usage periods

* Train capacity 400 to 420 people per train travelling 35 to 80 km/hr depending on station distance

* Trains will be powered on a straddle system

* Guideway design will accommodate blast protection

* Project timelines 24 months to build after completion of survey and design

* Total estimated project time: 30 – 36 months

The assistant of the Central Bank Governor, Ahmad Sultan Al Jamili, said that re-basing the Iraqi dinar is a complicated process.  He said that process of dropping three zeros from the currency will take long time.

Iraq’s rapidly growing microfinance industry reached a major milestone this month when the Al-Tadhamun (TDMN) microfinance organization opened its third branch office in the Northern Province of Ninawa. The opening brings the total number of microfinance branches and satellite offices across Iraq to 100 and underscores the success Iraq’s MFI sector has achieved in its drive to provide wider access to inclusive, quality financial services across the country.

Assisted by the U.S. Agency for International Development and its implementing partner, the USAID-Tijara Provincial Economic Growth Program (Tijara means trade in Arabic), the Iraqi microfinance sector encompasses 14 microfinance institutions (MFIs), two of which are international while the remaining 12 are indigenous.

Located in all of Iraq’s 18 Provinces, the industry currently serves over 62,000 clients with an outstanding portfolio of $84 million. MFIs are the primary providers of financial services and technical assistance for impoverished Iraqis previously excluded from the country’s financial sector. Iraqi microfinance institutions have disbursed more than $420 million in loans since the industry’s inception in late 2003.

Hiwa Salih Mahmud started Barin Aluminum in Sulaymaniyah with a $2,500 loan from the Al-Thiqa Small Business Loan Fund. Two subsequent microfinance loans, each for $2,500, enabled him to become a recognized manufacturer of residential aluminum doors and window frames. Today, his company is large enough to qualify for an SME bank loan but he continues to do business with Al-Thiqa. “I feel comfortable with microfinance loan officers,” says Hiwa, “because they really care about the working poor.”

Al-Tadhamun was established in 2008 with assistance from USAID and other U.S. Government sources as part of its strategy to support the development of indigenous MFIs in Iraq. As the security situation improved in 2009, TDMN began lending operations. It is now providing loans to agri-businesses and micro, small and medium scale enterprises (MSMEs). It recently began offering Islamic finance products based on the Al-Murabaha system. These Islamic products meet the need for Shariah-compliant financial products in the Sunni communities where TDMN predominantly operates.

TDMN and three other MFIs – Al-Aman, Al-Thiqa and the Talafar Economic Development Center (TEDC) – provide financial services to low-income people in conflict-prone provinces located between Iraq’s Kurdistan Region and the central part of the country. Together, these four MFIs have 5,639 clients and a cumulative outstanding portfolio of U.S. $7.1 million. Despite their impoverished circumstances, Iraqis receiving loans are remarkably responsible clients. Indeed, as of June 2010 the portfolio of at-risk loans amounted to less than one percent of the total portfolio.

MFIs are the most rapidly growing providers of finance in Iraq. Between 2004 and 2010, the industry had a cumulative annual growth rate of nearly 32%. By early 2009, this growth changed the dynamics of the Iraqi microfinance sector. MFIs gained increased independence as demand-driven financial service institutions. Today, they are increasingly recognized by the Iraqi NGO Assistance Office and the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI) for reaching out to the poor with unprecedented ability to scale-up impact.

The biggest driver for the Iraqi microfinance sector remains the vast, unmet demand for quality microfinance services. Twenty-three percent of the country’s 7.1 million people live on $2.20 per day or less. With less than one percent market penetration, the emerging Iraqi microfinance industry continues to face significant challenges of operating in a post-conflict environment.

As MFIs mature and the sector establishes itself as a sustainable provider of financial services, their access to growth and investment capital will determine their ability to remain sustainable. Already, MFIs such as Al-Bashaer, Al-Thiqa, Al-Aman, Amalkom, Izdiharona, Relief International and CHF International are profiled on the Microfinance Information Exchange, the global data gathering and analysis platform.

USAID-Tijara’s support of Iraq’s microfinance industry reflects the importance the Barack Obama administration places on helping poor people build productive lives. President Obama’s mother, Ann Dunham, played a key role in building the microfinance industry in Indonesia. Today, Indonesia’s microfinance industry is No. 1 in the world in terms of savers with 31 million members.

“I think it’s fair to say that her work in international development, the care and concern she showed for women and for poor people around the world, mattered greatly to her son, and certainly has informed his views and his vision,” says U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Asiacell, the largest private Iraqi company and the first and only mobile telecommunications company to provide coverage for all of Iraq, signed an agreement with Leo Burnett on Wednesday, the 9th of June 2010, at Leo Burnett’s offices in Amman.

By virtue of this agreement, Leo Burnett will provide Asiacell with its comprehensive advertising and promotional services. The agreement was signed by Dr. Diar Ahmed, CEO at Asiacell, the Marketing Director and Communications and PR Director on behalf of the company and Mr. Kamil Kuran, Managing Director of Leo Burnett Levant and Ms. Joëlle Jammal, Managing Director of Leo Burnett Jordan. This agreement does not terminate Asiacell’s existing advertising and promotions agreement with Wunderman, which also covers Asiacell’s advertising needs within the Iraqi market.

Commenting on this step, Dr. Diar Ahmed, said:

“We pride ourselves on our partnership with Leo Burnett, which is considered one of the world’s most prominent companies in the advertising and promotions industry. The Iraqi market is a promising environment for the advertising industry, as advertising is an integral and indispensible tool for all sectors and is necessary for their continued success. We aim through this partnership to maintain our ongoing engagement with our subscribers and the Iraqi public, which reflects the transparency and integrity we adopt in all that we do.”

Dr. Ahmed added, “We hope that this agreement will be a launching pad to a very successful partnership between Asiacell and Leo Burnett, and we look forward to seeing its positive results on the ground in the near future. We have full confidence in Leo Burnett’s management and creative team’s ability in adding value to our brand positioning in the Iraqi market.”

In turn, both Kuran and Jammal expressed their pride in this partnership with the largest telecom operator in Iraq. They further commended Asiacell on its excellent reputation in the Iraqi telecom market and highlighted Leo Burnett’s commitment in supplying the Iraqi market with the best services. They also indicated that the company’s knowledge and expertise in the telecomm industry across the region will add value and creativity to Asiacell’s marketing operations in Iraq.

Since its inception in 1981 as the first multinational agency in the region, Leo Burnett has grown from a single brand agency to a group of companies that provide a comprehensive range of communications solutions, including advertising, media, public relations, digital and CRM. Today, the group has offices in Dubai, Jeddah, Riyadh, Kuwait, Cairo, Beirut, Casablanca and Amman, and employs over 500 people.

A German company is interested in providing heavy equipment to Iraqi ports, in cooperation with the Iraqi Ports Company, an official source at the company said on Monday, according to a report from AK News.

“The German company Damij Cransing (sic) is seeking to invest … in direct cooperation with the Iraqi Ports Company and Iraqi businessmen,” Anmar al-Safi, head of the media department at the Iraqi Ports Company said. IBN believes the company involved is actually the German Demag Cranes, one of the world’s leading providers of industrial cranes.

“Iraqi ports need loading and unloading equipment because they receive large numbers of commercial vessels every day,” al-Safi added.

A director of the German company announced that the company would was ready to work with Iraqi Ports, adding that “our company is one of the biggest companies specializing in providing large ports with equipment, and is very experienced with major international ports.”

“The company is seeking to deal with experienced Iraqi businessmen,” he noted.