“The Budget is Your Right” is a new project for monitoring and following up on the performance of provincial councils in the process of approving the local administration budget.
The project is implemented by (Wadi), a German-Iraqi non-governmental organization and the (Kirkuk Now) media Agency with support and funding from the National Democracy Institute in Iraq (NDI) in four Iraqi governorates.
The project was announced at a press conference held Monday, July 15, in the Kirkuk Provincial Council building by members of the Wadi and KirkukNow, who stressed in a statement that the project is “important and related to the lives of citizens.”
In the press conference attended by a number of members of the Kirkuk Provincial Council, government officials and representatives of a number of civil society organizations and media institutions, the objectives of the project that will be implemented in each of the governorates of Kirkuk, Nineveh, Diyala and Salah al-Din were clarified.
Wadi, the Association for crisis Assistance and Development Cooperation, is supporting various projects to empower women and youth in the Middle East since 30 years.
It was founded in the fall of 1991 by various organizations and individuals. The original idea was to found an umbrella organization that coordinates and bundles the activities of various groups and people active in Iraq and Kurdistan.
Its main projects cover rehabilitation for long-term prisoners, literacy programs, education and training for women, public awareness of and fight against domestic violence as well as campaigns against Female Genital Mutilation FGM.
The statement said, “The project will last 10 months and consists of several stages, the most important of which is the issue of forming local governments and monitoring the steps of the provincial councils with regard to approving the budget and how to distribute it to the regions. In addition, we will follow the mechanism of disbursing the budget and how to allocate it to the different sectors.”
The project monitors the performance of the provincial councils by being present at budget sessions, conducting interviews with members of the provincial councils, officials and citizens, and producing many press reports and academic documents on the budget issue.
“All of this is to educate citizens and inform them about the work of the provincial councils,” according to the statement.
Regarding the project’s objectives, the statement stated, “In general, the project encourages more transparency in the budget issue and creates dialogue and understanding between citizens, officials, civil society and the media through this unique project in our beloved governorates, Kirkuk, Nineveh, Diyala and Salah al-Din.”
KirkukNow is an independent electronic website launched in April 2011, publishes stories and events taking place within or relevant to Iraq’s disputed territories, Iraq in the three main languages of these areas - Arabic, Kurdish and Turkmen- as well as in English with the aim of promoting peaceful coexistence among religious and ethnic minorities in those areas and providing easy access to information.
In February 2021, KirkukNow media outlet proudly publishes its first printed booklet titled "Kaka'is in the Time of Corona," funded by KirkukNow is an independent electronic website launched in April 2011, publishes stories and events taking place within or relevant to Iraq’s disputed territories, Iraq in the three main languages of these areas - Arabic, Kurdish and Turkmen- as well as in English with the aim of promoting peaceful coexistence among religious and ethnic minorities in those areas and providing easy access to information.
In February 2021, KirkukNow media outlet proudly publishes its first printed booklet titled "Kaka'is in the Time of Corona," funded by Coalition for Religious Equality and Inclusive Development (CREID).
