Sulaimani street sweeper struggles with low income

SULAIMANI, Kurdistan Region - Street sweepers in Sulaimani scramble to keep the city clean in order to make ends meet with a cumbersome job that does not pay well.

To clean the streets of his hometown, Musa Mohammed, 65, wakes up early in the morning and makes his way to collect the trash left on the streets as the rest of his family lies in their warm beds. 

Mohammed is the breadwinner of the family, gaining a monthly salary of 300,000 Iraqi dinars (about $200). Raising five children, he barely survives with the money he receives as three of his children still live with him. 

 “My salary is only 300,000 Iraqi dinars. It's not enough for me and my family. Thanks to God it's better than nothing. I do this work for the sake of my family,” Mohammed told Rudaw on Monday.

Mohammed’s story is unfortunately not unique. Several street sweepers across the Kurdistan Region live in the same conditions, with their salaries ranging from 300,000 to 400,000 Iraqi dinars ($200-$270). 

Many of those cleaning the streets are either old men or refugees.

Piles of trash are often seen in Sulaimani as the municipality teams are only able to collect 30 percent of it. 

According to data obtained by Rudaw from cleaning companies, 1,200 tons of trash is thrown away on daily basis in Sulaimani alone.