Three presidencies take 11.5% of Iraq’s public wage bill, says watchdog

Shafaq News– Baghdad

More than a tenth of Iraq’s public-sector wage bill is spent on the three presidencies, the Eco Iraq Observatory reported on Saturday, warning that the allocation reflects distorted spending priorities.

In a statement, the Observatory said the Presidency of the Republic, Parliament, and the Council of Ministers together account for about 11.5% of total state salaries, a level it described as excessive when measured against the income of ordinary public employees.

Cumulative state salaries, according to the Observatory, reached 56 trillion Iraqi dinars (about $37.5B) through November 2025. Of that total, 5.9 trillion dinars (around $3.95B) went to the Council of Ministers, 0.5 trillion dinars (about $335M) to Parliament, and 0.04 trillion dinars (roughly $27M) to the Presidency of the Republic, bringing combined spending for the three presidencies to 6.46 trillion dinars (approximately $4.33B).

Iraq’s Ministerial Council for the Economy, in late December, approved measures to curb government outlays, including cuts to allocations for the three presidencies and sharp reductions in official travel.

The spending debate coincides with mounting pressure on the public payroll, as government salaries had not been disbursed by January 31 —later than the usual payment window between the 20th and 25th of each month —fueling frustration among state employees. An informed source attributed the delay to a “shortage of cash,” citing limited liquidity in government banks despite the completion of payroll and funding procedures.

Read more: Liquidity shortage delays Iraqi salaries: Experts warn of prolonged financial strain