Watan Initiative offers one million free residential plots

Shafaq News- Baghdad

Iraq will open online registration in October for a government initiative to provide one million free residential land plots with infrastructure to eligible families, the Prime Minister’s Office said on Saturday.

The Watan (Home) Initiative, launched under directives from Prime Minister Ali Faleh Al-Zaidi, will provide plots at no cost to Iraqi families whose members do not own a home or other real estate property.

More than 216,000 plots have been prepared in 15 provinces for the first phase of the initiative. Infrastructure work will begin through donations and contributions from investors at no cost.

Iraq has struggled with a housing shortage for decades, with the Ministry of Construction, Housing and Municipalities putting the deficit at around five million units. Successive governments have introduced housing programs and major residential projects since 2003, but many have fallen short of their targets, leaving demand largely unmet.

Read more: Iraq's housing deficit outlasts another government plan