By Ranj Alaaldin. Iraq now has a new government in place, six months after holding elections against a backdrop of a long period of political instability and social unrest. With the new leadership of Prime Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi and President Barham Salih—both widely touted as reformist, progressive, and Western-leaning—there are high hopes that the […]
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Internet Shutdowns Cost Iraq $40m/day
By John Lee. An Iraqi government block on internet access is reportedly costing the country $40 million per day in lost business, sales and opportunities. The estimate is from the COST tool, based on the Brookings Institution economic impact methodology for internet shutdowns, using data collected by the NetBlocks internet shutdown observatory in collaboration with […]
Tags: Amnesty International, Brookings Institution, censorship, featured, Human rights, Internet, press freedom, Protests
Govt Internet Shutdowns Cost Iraq $209m
By John Lee. Iraq, along with India, has the most government shutdowns of the internet. According to a report from the Brookings Institution, Iraqi authorities shut down the country's internet on 22 separate occasions between 1st July 2015 and 30th June 2016, at an estimated economic cost of $209 million. Iraq was taken offline in […]
Turn a Light On: Electricity Sector Reform in Iraq
By Luay Al-Khatteeb and Harry Istepanian, of the Brookings Institution. The need to confront and drive back the forces of the Islamic State (IS, ISIS. ISIL) has pushed long-term reform efforts in Iraq far down the list of priorities. Yet pressing economic reforms – such as restructuring and rebuilding the country’s energy sector – increasingly […]
Al-Khatteeb: The Abadi I Know
By Robert Tollast. Iraq Energy Institute Director and Brookings Fellow Luay al-Khatteeb (pictured) has written a biography piece for Haider-al Abadi for The Huffington Post. Al-Khatteeb outlines some of the huge challenges Abadi faces, but notes that from 24 years of knowing PM Abadi, the new Iraqi premier is well suited to take on the momentous […]
Unfinished Business: An American Strategy for Iraq Moving Forward
The Brookings Institution in Washington DC has issued a new report entitled "Unfinished Business: An American Strategy for Iraq Moving Forward". Ignoring the gratuitous use of the term 'moving forward' in the title, it's a thought-provoking read. The executive summary is shown below, and the full report can be downloaded from the Brooking Institution by […]