Attention turns towards the parliament tomorrow, Thursday, to vote on vacant ministries and deputy prime ministers, as part of efforts to complete the government formation after five months of suspended executive dues, alongside ongoing preparations to discuss the 2027 general
budget draft. In this context, Prime Minister Ali Faleh Al-Zaidi proposed, via an official correspondence sent to the Speaker of Parliament, holding a session on Thursday, October 15, 2026, to present candidates for deputy prime ministers and vacant and newly
established ministries for voting. He pointed out that the deputy prime ministers will not receive any salaries or financial allocations, and no new offices will be established for them. On the other hand, MP Kazem Al-Shammari confirmed the existence of
a consensus within the Coordination Framework regarding the session's date, explaining that the proposed structure includes the establishment of three ministries: Tourism, Digital Technology, and a State Ministry. Al-Shammari clarified that separating tourism from the Ministry of Culture aims to
develop religious and archaeological tourism and invest in Iraq's historical potentials, while the creation of the Digital Technology Ministry comes to unify directorates and software companies distributed among ministries and support governance and automation. He stressed that the new structure
will rely on existing personnel and departments without the need for additional appointments or financial allocations, as he stated. In a related context, MP Haider Al-Asadi indicated that the names submitted by political parties to fill the vacant positions have
undergone scrutiny and review within the Council of Ministers. This movement to complete the cabinet coincides with parliamentary preparations to discuss the 2027 budget draft, amidst assurances from members of the Finance Committee that completing the government formation will support
the preparation of the budget and determine spending, investment, and financial commitment priorities. In this regard, parliamentary Finance Committee member Riyadh Al-Tamimi explained that drafting the budget is closely linked to executive government procedures, while committee member Ghofran Iqbal Al-Shammari
mentioned that the arrival of the anticipated project will allow lawmakers to study its clauses, investment projects, and review financial commitments. Along the same lines, MP Safaa Al-Jaberi stressed the importance of adopting the "programs and performance budget" methodology to
link government spending with actual results on the ground, while political researcher Aaed Al-Hilali considered completing the government and appointing its ministers an institutional necessity to unify executive decision-making and face upcoming financial challenges. Al-Hilali pointed out that the proposal
regarding adopting an exchange rate of 1500 dinars per dollar imposes a careful review of assumptions related to revenues and expenditures, considering that finalizing the cabinet forms a pivotal step to mature the budget draft and facilitate its discussion and
final approval.
