When the ninth ministerial cabinet of the Kurdistan Regional Government assumed its duties in 2019 under the premiership of Prime Minister Masrour Barzani, the planning landscape was not confined to managing routine daily files; rather, it demanded the formulation of a long-term vision for rebuilding infrastructure and restructuring public administration. No sooner had the Region embarked on its initial steps than it collided with a series of compounded crises that swept across the world and the region—starting with the economic paralysis caused by the coronavirus pandemic, passing through the sharp and sudden drop in global oil prices, and culminating in complex political and financial pressures both internally and regionally.
In the face of these challenges, the cabinet adopted a path focused on investment in the State’s core assets: water, food, energy, and administrative organization. Today, official data issued by the Media and Information Directorate of the Kurdistan Regional Government reveal the yield of seven years of systematic work aimed at reducing reliance on rentier economics and transitioning toward sustainable institutions supported by modern technologies.
In an era in which climate change imposes its harsh conditions on the Middle East, securing water and food sources becomes the first line of defense for the stability of societies.
Addressing water scarcity in Kurdistan was not merely a temporary response; rather, it came through a large-scale engineering plan that resulted in the construction of 9 vital dams at a cost of 265.7 billion dinars, raising the Region’s storage capacity by 252.8 million cubic meters. Dams such as “Komspan” and “Dwin” are no longer just concrete blocks; they have become artificial lakes that contribute to groundwater recharge, support farmers, and mitigate the risks of seasonal floods. These efforts were complemented by the construction of 30 water ponds (bonds), while work continues on building 57 additional ponds with the aim of conserving every possible drop of water.
In parallel with water security, food security required the formulation of an agricultural policy that ensures the protection of local produce, absorbs farmers’ crops, and develops their competitive capacities. This was clearly demonstrated in the establishment of four major silos with a storage capacity of 160,000 tons in Qushtapa, Kalar, Rovia, and Halabja, at a total cost of 90 billion dinars, with plans to expand this network to other areas.
Nor did the wheel stop at storage; it extended to supporting exports. During these years, a qualitative leap was witnessed in the export of surplus Kurdistan agricultural products—such as pomegranates, honey, and apples—to regional, Gulf, and European markets, and even to the United States, for the first time in the Region’s history, coinciding with the rise in agricultural investment’s contribution to the domestic product from 1.8% in 2018 to 12% in 2025.
Perhaps the tangible changes in roads and dams are more visible to the naked eye, yet the deeper and more impactful reform in the state’s structure took place behind the desks and corridors of public administration. The Region waged an organized battle against bureaucracy and financial waste through the adoption of a digital transformation strategy.
At the forefront of this transformation stood the “My Account” (Hejmari Man) project, which succeeded in registering and settling the salaries of more than 950,000 employees and retirees within the accredited banking system.
This project was not merely a technical means of disbursing salaries; it served as a gateway to integrating broad segments of society into the modern financial system, facilitating their access to loans and banking services, supported by the installation of more than 638 ATMs and the distribution of 895,000 bank cards.
Digitization did not stop at the banking sector; more than 29 unified digital systems were launched and activated to simplify citizens’ lives and reduce customs and administrative red tape. These include digital identity systems, e-payment platforms, and the Kurdistan Financial Management System, which contributed to controlling public expenditure, protecting the treasury, and entrenching transparency.
This digitization was accompanied by stringent auditing measures that led to the correction of the career path, including the termination of 4,189 illegal dual salaries, the review of the files of thousands of civilian and military employees and special-grade staff, and the recovery of 2.130 trillion dinars from previously unpaid loans and banking facilities.
The energy sector has historically suffered from structural gaps in distribution and production, which prompted the government to take decisive measures to raise production efficiency by relying primarily on clean natural gas as the source of 83% of generated energy. As a result of this policy, total electricity production rose from 2,360 megawatts in 2019 to 4,334 megawatts in 2026, an increase of 1,974 megawatts.
But the real achievement lay in reshaping the citizen’s experience with electricity service through the “Ronahi—Lighting” project, which aims to provide subscribers with continuous power 24 hours a day. With a coverage rate of 90% in areas included in the project, more than 5.4 million citizens and 1.2 million households are currently benefiting from this stable service, enabling the local environment to dispense with the burdens and emissions of more than 6,000 private generators.
This service renaissance was paralleled by the development of transport infrastructure; 1,271 road and bridge projects were executed, with a total length of nearly 5,940 km and at a cost exceeding 5 trillion dinars.
This modern network was not only intended to facilitate citizen mobility and reduce traffic accidents; it also represented a vital commercial artery linking the Region’s districts and sub-districts to urban centers and to border crossings with neighboring countries, thereby reinforcing administrative decentralization through the declaration of new independent administrations in Soran and Zakho to streamline residents’ transactions and ease the burden on the capital, Erbil.
Economic development is incomplete without attention to the human and social dimension. In this context, Kurdistan took balanced steps toward enhancing education, health, and community empowerment services. A total of 273 new schools were built, and 3,000 existing schools were rehabilitated and renovated, alongside the provision of extensive exemptions and financial facilities for university tuition fees for various segments, particularly the families of martyrs, Peshmerga, and top-performing students.
The health sector also witnessed the commissioning of 79 general and specialized hospitals, the establishment of 8 cancer treatment centers and hospitals, in addition to the implementation of the pharmaceutical guarantee sticker system to protect consumers, regulate the drug market, and ensure quality control.
In addition to this, the government worked to provide employment contracts and permanent appointments for 42,037 teaching staff and lecturers, and to recruit thousands of graduates and doctors, alongside the inclusion and allocation of new social care salaries for 19,918 persons with special needs.
In the environmental domain, the proportion of green spaces in the Region increased from 15% in 2018 to 20% in 2026, supported by vital projects such as the Erbil Green Belt Project—a strategic circular belt two kilometers wide aimed at planting millions of drought-resistant trees to effectively contribute to moderating temperatures, combating desertification, and improving urban quality of life.
A careful reading of the outcomes of the past seven years makes it clear that the Kurdistan Region has chosen a path that balances the construction of tangible strategic assets with the digital and financial restructuring of government administration.
Although the road toward comprehensive and complete development still requires further work and collective effort to overcome remaining challenges, this cabinet has succeeded in laying solid structural foundations for a more stable and self-reliant future, rendering the Region’s experience a model that proves that organized planning and institutional transformation are the surest way to overcome crises and move toward sustainability.
Note: This text is translated from the original Arabic version… Read the Arabic version:Click here
