The Kurdistan Region of Iraq has started the New Year in a sombre mood. To overcome, it needs the help and initiatives of all its citizens.
After four months without salary, many Kurds are desperate. Civil servants did not get their salaries, because the government does not have money due to the low price of oil, the continuing disputes with Baghdad and the consequent budget cut, on top of the costs of the war against the Islamic State (ISIS).
First the lower classes were hit, especially those civil servants who do not have a second job. But as people are tightening their belts, additional income from other sources such as owning a taxi, have decreased as well.
The Kurdish middle class is now also feeling the effect. Doctors, engineers and others working for the government on a higher wage, have hit the end of their reserves too. And with most of those around them not getting paid either, it has become harder to even find loans to tide things over.
Shopkeepers are feeling the impact, as they sell less. It’s not just that people cannot buy clothes or shoes. They cannot afford to visit the doctor anymore, and often are months behind on their bills, for electricity and rent, for instance. And after four months, many have had to adapt their diets, as even money for food is lacking.
Some Kurdish friends who are better off tell me they feel ashamed to go out or even celebrate birthdays and anniversaries, knowing how many others live in hardship.
All this is very hard to imagine, in a region where less than two years ago, the economic growth was put at 10 percent. Where foreign companies were eager to set up businesses, and new hotels and restaurants were opening almost daily. Where tourists were attracted to enjoy their time and spend their money.
Kurdistan in 2016 has hardly any tourists left. Businessmen left and restaurants are closing for lack of customers. Supermarkets have fewer customers who buy less, and even the main road outside my window is less busy as people are trying to save petrol.
This situation also reflects on the nearly 2 million refugees and internally displaced people having found refuge in Kurdistan, of whom many are spending their second or even third winter in a tent.
With the United Nations having had to cut down on food aid because of a lack of donors, the refugees in the camps have become more dependent on other sources. Before Kurdish civilians offered help, but now that flow of aid is drying up too.
The results cannot only be translated into money. Civil servants who do not get paid, are not eager to work, so it affects the performance of the government and its different departments and services. Others have decided to work completely to the book, and are no longer open for any leniency or rules bending for the sake of a better result.
More and more people are asking me for a way out; can I help them find a visa or residency elsewhere? I understand the urge to leave for a better life, but Kurdistan needs all hands on deck right now, to help the region reach the end of this tunnel.
This is the moment for people to become less dependent on government salaries, by setting up private enterprises because oil prices may not rise anytime soon nor will the disputes with Baghdad be resolved.
And at the same time, those who used to send their money to bank accounts or investment abroad should for now use this capital to stimulate the economy.
If they, together with others who still have an income from trade, business or investment in Kurdistan help their family members and neighbours set up their own enterprises, however small, the economy can start to climb out of the zeroes again. Successful businesses should give grants to those who want to start on their own, and put conditions, instead of just giving money to persons who come begging.
Those who still have money to spend, should not feel shy to spend it, because they can help restaurants and teashops to survive, and those working there keeping their job.
It’s not about making big money, it’s about making enough to live. That way people who have an income can spend and help others find work and an income.
It’s time for action, for Kurds to help Kurds. Perhaps we temporarily need to go back to the situation of the nineties, when those outside were sending the money. That first helped Kurdistan to survive the sanctions and poverty, and then to set the first steps towards the recent economic boom. It worked then, and it surely can work again.
What is most needed is the lethargy to end, just like the waiting for the government to pay up. For Kurds to help each other to get on with their future.
After four months without salary, many Kurds are desperate. Civil servants did not get their salaries, because the government does not have money due to the low price of oil, the continuing disputes with Baghdad and the consequent budget cut, on top of the costs of the war against the Islamic State (ISIS).
First the lower classes were hit, especially those civil servants who do not have a second job. But as people are tightening their belts, additional income from other sources such as owning a taxi, have decreased as well.
The Kurdish middle class is now also feeling the effect. Doctors, engineers and others working for the government on a higher wage, have hit the end of their reserves too. And with most of those around them not getting paid either, it has become harder to even find loans to tide things over.
Shopkeepers are feeling the impact, as they sell less. It’s not just that people cannot buy clothes or shoes. They cannot afford to visit the doctor anymore, and often are months behind on their bills, for electricity and rent, for instance. And after four months, many have had to adapt their diets, as even money for food is lacking.
Some Kurdish friends who are better off tell me they feel ashamed to go out or even celebrate birthdays and anniversaries, knowing how many others live in hardship.
All this is very hard to imagine, in a region where less than two years ago, the economic growth was put at 10 percent. Where foreign companies were eager to set up businesses, and new hotels and restaurants were opening almost daily. Where tourists were attracted to enjoy their time and spend their money.
Kurdistan in 2016 has hardly any tourists left. Businessmen left and restaurants are closing for lack of customers. Supermarkets have fewer customers who buy less, and even the main road outside my window is less busy as people are trying to save petrol.
This situation also reflects on the nearly 2 million refugees and internally displaced people having found refuge in Kurdistan, of whom many are spending their second or even third winter in a tent.
With the United Nations having had to cut down on food aid because of a lack of donors, the refugees in the camps have become more dependent on other sources. Before Kurdish civilians offered help, but now that flow of aid is drying up too.
The results cannot only be translated into money. Civil servants who do not get paid, are not eager to work, so it affects the performance of the government and its different departments and services. Others have decided to work completely to the book, and are no longer open for any leniency or rules bending for the sake of a better result.
More and more people are asking me for a way out; can I help them find a visa or residency elsewhere? I understand the urge to leave for a better life, but Kurdistan needs all hands on deck right now, to help the region reach the end of this tunnel.
This is the moment for people to become less dependent on government salaries, by setting up private enterprises because oil prices may not rise anytime soon nor will the disputes with Baghdad be resolved.
And at the same time, those who used to send their money to bank accounts or investment abroad should for now use this capital to stimulate the economy.
If they, together with others who still have an income from trade, business or investment in Kurdistan help their family members and neighbours set up their own enterprises, however small, the economy can start to climb out of the zeroes again. Successful businesses should give grants to those who want to start on their own, and put conditions, instead of just giving money to persons who come begging.
Those who still have money to spend, should not feel shy to spend it, because they can help restaurants and teashops to survive, and those working there keeping their job.
It’s not about making big money, it’s about making enough to live. That way people who have an income can spend and help others find work and an income.
It’s time for action, for Kurds to help Kurds. Perhaps we temporarily need to go back to the situation of the nineties, when those outside were sending the money. That first helped Kurdistan to survive the sanctions and poverty, and then to set the first steps towards the recent economic boom. It worked then, and it surely can work again.
What is most needed is the lethargy to end, just like the waiting for the government to pay up. For Kurds to help each other to get on with their future.
The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rudaw.
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