ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Baghdad is set to host an investment forum on June 14 and 15, an official confirmed. The event has “strategic objectives” aimed at accelerating economic development across numerous sectors in Iraq.

The forum is sponsored by the National Investment Commission, the Iraqi Prime Minister’s Office, and the Iraqi Economic Council.

"The upcoming investment forum organized by the commission is the first of its kind… it has strategic objectives to accelerate economic development in the country,” Haider Makiya, head of Iraq’s National Investment Commission, told state media.

Makiya added that "the forum seeks to introduce the available investment opportunities, which number 141, with official approvals and are ready to be presented to local, Arab, and foreign companies.”

The event will be attended by over 300 international entities, including national representatives and corporations, "representing a historic opportunity to showcase Iraq's investment potential,” Makiya said.

In 2006, the Iraqi government enacted the Investment Law, a significant initiative designed to attract foreign investment to the country.

“The opportunities cover diverse sectors, including industry, housing, renewable energy, communications, pharmaceuticals, agriculture, and others,” the head of the investment commission stated.

He went on to explain that "the forum aims to attract the largest possible number of foreign and Arab companies to participate in infrastructure projects in Iraq, in addition to introducing international expertise to quality projects, in line with the investment law, which requires the employment of skilled and unskilled Iraqi workers in projects.”

Iraq has in recent years witnessed the entry of an abundance of investment companies that carry out projects in the sectors of energy, housing, industry, and agriculture.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani in early April valued investment licenses in the country at $88 billion.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) reported in early 2024 that Iraq's economy contracted by 2.2 percent in 2022. It predicted growth rates of 1.4 percent in 2024 and 5.3 percent in 2025.

Iraq remains OPEC’s second-largest oil producer, with daily output exceeding 3 million barrels, accounting for over 90 percent of exports and the primary source of public funding.