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WFP Iraq Country Brief, March 2022

In Numbers

• 710,492 people assisted in March 2022
• US$ 2.25 million distributed in March 2022 through cash-based transfers
• 1,686 mt of in-kind assistance distributed
• US$ 39.4 million six months net funding requirements (April - September 2022)

Operational Updates

• In March, WFP provided cash and food assistance to 182,152 internally displaced persons (IDPs), 68,419 refugees, and 8,118 people from vulnerable communities through resilience building initiatives. Through the School Feeding Programme, WFP supported 451,803 children.
• WFP's resilience-building initiatives continue to provide smallholder farmers with the support they need in order to improve their production and increase crop yields. In Ninewa governorate, WFP provided greenhouses, beehives, cattle and seeds to 325 farmers who utilize the knowledge and expertise shared by WFP to provide a sustainable livelihood for themselves and their families.
• WFP collaborated with the Iraqi Ministry of Water Resources to organize the second Annual Baghdad International Water Conference, to help highlight and provide solutions to the issues of climate change and water scarcity facing Iraq's people and agriculture. WFP presented its latest data and findings on the issue to support the government of Iraq with its Green Paper to address these serious challenges.
• In its continued efforts to support Iraq's youth, and confront climate change, WFP provided a new solar power system for the Career Development Centre at the University of Sulaymaniyah. The solar energy provided now effectively meets the electricity gap during power cuts or shortages, enabling seamless support to youth in need as they take part in the EMPACT (Empowerment in Action) project. Participation in this project supports students with relevant training in English, digital skills and entrepreneurship that enables them to find work opportunities, start small businesses and provide an income.
• In collaboration with the University of Sulaymaniyah and German creative design platform JOVOTO, WFP celebrated the three young EMPACT graduates Aisha, Mohammed and Kawther, whose designs revolving around the EMPACT project won the first, second and third prizes respectively, in the first design innovation joint competition.
• For International Women's Day on 8 March, Urban Livelihoods participant and trainer Nada was invited by the Embassy of the Netherlands in Baghdad to visit from Basra, to participate in a special event to speak about her journey and experience. The impact of WFP's Urban Livelihoods programme, implemented across southern Iraq and Ninewa, is apparent through star participants such as Nada. She attended the programme, then taught photography skills that she acquired from her training, quickly became a social entrepreneur, leader of a prolific youth creative group, and role model for her contemporaries in Basra.
• Under the School Feeding Programme funded and coimplemented by the Government of Iraq, WFP organized several workshops and training sessions to further develop the capacity of the Ministry of Education, to be able to successfully implement the programme independently in the future, while WFP continues providing technical and logistics support and expertise. These included three Training of Trainers (ToT) sessions, three capacity building workshops and a Food Quality Control workshop that was delivered in cooperation with WFP's Regional Bureau.
• As part of the joint Social Protection Programme with the government and UN partners, WFP held three consultation workshops for more than 80 Government of Iraq and Kurdistan Regional Government staff members and key Ministerial participants. The workshops produced a roadmap for establishing a Single Registry based on multi-stakeholder discussions. The workshops also initiated dialogue on the improvement of Iraq's social protection schemes with special focus on the public distribution system for food rations (PDS). In addition to multiple Ministry representatives, the workshops were attended by UNICEF, ILO, World Bank, GIZ and UNHCR.
• Representatives of Canada and Germany visited Sharya IDP camp in Duhok and met with a number of displaced families to discuss their situation, reasons that prohibit their return to their homes, and ongoing needs.
• In light of the rise in food prices as a result of the RussianUkrainian conflict, WFP temporarily increased its cash transfer value to vulnerable IDPs living in Jadaa-5 camp to mitigate the effects and ensure that families are not affected.

The full report can be downloaded here.

(Source: ReliefWeb)

By Mina Al-Oraibi, for Foreign Policy. Any opinions expressed here are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.

Iraq's Oil Dysfunction

The world's sixth-largest oil producer still suffers from fuel shortages and power outages.

Click here to read the full story.

By John Lee

Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi has ordered that a working team from the Ministry of Electricity travel to Iran to solve problems related to the supplying of gas.

At a meeting with the Electricity Ministry and senior officials on Sunday, there was discussion about the high electricity demand in summer, and how to remove obstacles relating to the production and distribution of electricity.

The meeting addressed plans to protect electric pylons from sabotage, and the status of the rehabilitation work on the Baghdad / Baiji 400KV line.

(Source: Office of the Iraqi Prime Minister)

By John Lee.

The Iraqi Cabinet has approved a contract between the Ministry of Electricity and Iran's Power Generation and Distribution Company (Tavanir) for the supply of electricity.

According to details released from the cabinet meeting this week, the term of the contract shall be five years, and the price is reduced from 3.4 cents per kWh to 4.6 cents.

It adds, "the commitment of the Iranian side to supply a total electrical capacity of (1,000) megawatts as a minimum on all lines during the peak load months, provided that the commitment of the contracting parties to this contract is reviewed annually. An exception to the delay fines, as it was not included in the original contract, given that the contract is between two governments."

"The limits of the price of a barrel of oil in the formula for calculating the cost of purchasing an energy unit are between $55 a barrel as a minimum and up to $90 a barrel as a maximum."

(Source: Govt of Iraq)

WFP launches solar energy solution for youth project with University of Sulaymaniyah

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has helped provide a new solar power system for the Career Development Centre at the University of Sulaymaniyah.

The solar energy provided now effectively meets the electricity gap during power cuts or shortages, enabling seamless support to youth in need.

The centre is a key structure for the EMPACT (Empowerment in Action) project, WFP's pioneering digital skills, English and entrepreneurship training programme, which runs across Iraq. Starting in 2017 in Sulaymaniyah governorate as a pilot, EMPACT expanded to Anbar, Baghdad, Duhok, Erbil and Mosul.

The initiative has won multiple awards for its innovative approach supporting vulnerable youth - internally displaced people (IDPs), Syrian refugees and their host communities - with the training and skills they need to take up work opportunities, including online, or to start small businesses.

"Through this new solar power system, WFP and the University of Sulaymaniyah created a sustainable, green energy solution, to continue improving livelihoods for youth through EMPACT," said WFP Iraq Representative Ally Raza Qureshi. "Given the impact of climate change in Iraq, which has the worst effects on the most vulnerable people such as youth and women, the adoption of green energy solutions with the University of Sulaymaniyah is even more timely. Iraq has huge potential for renewable energy adoption, which is a priority among its commitments made to climate action, including at last week's Baghdad International Water Conference, on which WFP and our UN partners collaborated. We thank the people and government of Germany, without whose support this initiative would not be possible."

WFP is working closely with the Government of Iraq and partners on addressing the root causes of climate change and adaptation, and national policy to support the most vulnerable families. WFP is committed to using renewable energy solutions in its projects, part of its climate action. As well as climate-smart programmes, the solar power system is one example of how WFP weaves climate change sensitivity into all its work, such as recycling and avoiding plastic use through reusable water bottles.

Since 2020, WFP and University of Sulaymaniyah have successfully partnered on running EMPACT courses, supporting 520 students to graduate. These young graduates are a small portion of the thousands of students who graduated since 2017, and thousands more of their family members. WFP also runs EMPACT in Colombia, Kenya, Lebanon, Turkey and Zimbabwe. Students learn a wide range of skills including office software, image editing and visual production, and coding such as HTML or Python.

(Source: UN)

Belgium renews commitment to stabilization with new €1.4 million contribution

The Government of Belgium has contributed an additional €1.4 million (US$ 1.6 million) to the Funding Facility for Stabilization (FFS).

The critical funding will support stabilization efforts implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) across Iraq's five governorates in Anbar, Diyala, Kirkuk, Ninewa and Salah Al-Din.

This is the Kingdom of Belgium's seventh contribution to the FFS, bringing the country's total contribution to €13.52 million. With this generous additional funding, UNDP will be able to support the rehabilitation of critical infrastructure in the sectors of electricity, water and education.

"The impact of our collective stabilization efforts with continuous support from key international partners such as Belgium are clearly visible across Iraq. Schools are reopening, clean and potable water is reaching people, roads are linking people and homes are rehabilitated," says UNDP Resident Representative Zena Ali Ahmad.

"However, critical stabilization needs remain as 1 million people are still internally displaced, including the hardest-to-return populations. This contribution comes at a critical period for Iraq, as we look to safeguard the hard-won stabilization gains and prevent ISIL's resurgence," she adds.

"After winning the war, we must win the peace and address the root causes and consequences of Daesh's presence in the region. In this regard, building resilience for returnees and local communities in the sectors of electricity, water and education is critical to the long-term stability of the region. That is why Belgium is happy to confirm with this new contribution its full and continuous engagement in the stabilization process in Iraq since 2016," Axel Kenes, Director General for Multilateral Affairs and Globalization, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Belgium.

At the request of the Government of Iraq, UNDP established the FFS in 2015 to facilitate the return of displaced Iraqis, lay the groundwork for reconstruction and recovery, provide capacity support and safeguard against the resurgence of violence and extremism. The mandate was extended to 2023 due to the scale of urgent remaining stabilization needs and the request from the GOI and international partners to continue our interventions.

In 2021, FFS placed greater emphasis on utilizing an integrated approach that included promoting sustainable livelihood and employment opportunities by rehabilitating supportive infrastructure for productive sectors, such as agriculture and small industries.

(Source: UN)

By Muhammad Jawad Adib for Al Monitor. Any opinions expressed here are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.

Will Iran's electricity cut turn Iraq toward Gulf?

Iraq is facing reduced electricity and gas supplies from Iran, which might lead Iraq toward an electricity connection with the Gulf.

Click here to read the full article.

UK-based Aggreko has announced that it has completed commissioning of the largest flare-gas-to-power project in the Middle East to date at 165 MW capacity.

The plant is situated nearby the Saqala [Sarqala] Field, Garmain block, South East Kurdistan.

The 165 MW modular power plant has run at full capacity for 72 hours in the project's final site acceptance test (SAT), marking successful on-time, on-budget delivery.

The plant is run on approximately 40 million square cubic feet (SCF) per day of associated petroleum gas (APG) from the Saqala Field, saving 840 tonnes of CO2 per day, and cutting flaring by a third.

Delivered over the course of 2020-2021 against the backdrop of the pandemic, the project was conceived and executed in close collaboration with Kurdistan's Ministry of National Resources (MNR) and Ministry of Electricity (MOE).

Aggreko also delivered a new 6km gathering pipeline to transport the APG to the power plant, and upgraded 7km of 33 kV and 33km of 132 kV overhead cables to new high tensile low sage (HTLS) conductors in order for the local distribution grid to handle the new power plant's full output.

Ahmed Mufti, Kurdistan Regional Government's Deputy Minister of Natural Resources (MNR) said:

"We worked with Aggreko to provide a creative solution to convert flare gas to power in a way that directly benefits the local population and the regional in general, while creating a positive environmental impact and improving air quality."

Phil Burns, Managing Director for Aggreko Middle East, comments:

"Kurdistan's Regional Government has been forward-thinking in looking for ways to capture and convert gas that would otherwise be flared, to unlock production and power the local economy. We are extremely proud to have worked with the Ministries to deliver the Middle East's largest flare gas to power project to date, while upgrading the local infrastructure to the lasting benefit of the community and businesses it serves."

The project is now contracted to run for four years, delivering power 24/7/365.

Built using 192 MW of modular gas generators, the plant can easily be scaled up or down in response to changing gas volumes.

Approximately 60 Aggreko engineers have delivered the project, with 80 local jobs created directly and indirectly for the site's delivery and ongoing operation, including 44 local nationals who have already commenced Aggreko's official training scheme.

More here.

(Source: Aggreko)

By John Lee.

Iraq and Saudi Arabia have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to link their power grids.

It was signed by Saudi Arabia's Minister of Energy, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, and Iraq's Minister of Electricity, Adel Karim.

The Secretary-General of Iraq's Council of Ministers, Dr. Hamid Naim Al-Ghazi [Hamed Al Gazi], called on the Saudi Ministry of Energy to send a technical delegation to Baghdad next week to finalise the details of the interconnector, and to hold workshops with the Iraqi side.

(Sources: Iraqi Cabinet, INA, Gulf News)

By John Lee.

The President of  the Iraqi National Oil Company (INOC) has laid the foundation stone for the $594-million crude oil processing plant at Block 9, within the Al-Fayha Oil Field in Basra Province.

Ihsan Abdul-Jabbar Ismail said that the development is important for the production of light oil, with a target for this project of up to 100,000 barrels of crude oil per day, along with 135 mmscfd of gas at a future stage for electricity production.

Khaled Hamza, General Manager of Basra Oil Company (BOC), said the development of the field was started in 2014 by Kuwait Energy Company (KEC) and continued by the Chinese company UEG [United Energy Group] which acquired KEC, and that the first exploration well was drilled and the results were encouraging.

He stressed that the oil produced from the exploration Block 9 is one of the best types of oil globally.

The CEO of UEG, Sonk Yu [Song Yu, Chief Operation Officer??], said that laying the foundation stone for the development was an important moment for the company.

(Sources: Ministry of Oil, UEG)