Report .. Electronic payment removes the "dinar" from pockets of personnel in Iraq

2017/08/10 12:24

Report

Baghdad today - follow-up

Al-Arabi newspaper published a report in which it said that there are efforts by the Iraqi government to expand the dependence on electronic payment cards (ATM), to give employees salaries, which paves the way for reducing the deal in paper currency "dinar".

"The Baghdad government is adopting a plan to implement the" digitization "of salaries, hoping to complete them in 2020," the report says.

The "settlement of salaries" means disbursing directly throughbanks instead of delivery to employees in the workplace, through a special account opened to the employee at the bank and drawn by the electronic payment card, or receipt in cash.

The newspaper quoted experts and officials that "the system is prevalent in many countries of the world with the expansion of banking business and services, and with the increasing volume of electronic transactions, it had to be applied."

They pointed out that "the application will contribute to reduce the time and effort and cost, in the transactions of banks and transactions of citizens of different financial, in addition to reducing the handling of cash and risk."

The process of "settling salaries" 19 government and private banks and foreign. The number of employees in the public sector who earn their salaries by cards is about four million to one million in the private sector.

The mass of wages in Iraq 35 trillion dinars (27.5 billion dollars), according to earlier statements of Abdul Zahra Hindawi, spokesman for the Ministry of Planning and Development Cooperation.

The number of Iraqis earning salaries and pensions, along with monthly benefits of about 7 million, is estimated to be expected by the government before 2020, while accurate figures on the private sector are not available.

The Iraqi Ministry of Electricity said in a statement that the Iraqi Trade Bank (Hukoomi) will issue "MasterCard" cards to ministry employees free of charge once if an account is opened inside the bank. The second time the cost of issuance will be 40 thousand dinars (32 dollars) if lost.

The ministry added that the Iraqi Trade Bank will set up ATMs at the Ministry of Electricity to pay employees salaries on time when the information is sent to the bank by the ministry. The salary of the employee will be 2000 Iraqi dinars (less than two dollars) for the total salary, regardless of its value.

She explained that the employee has the right to withdraw his salary from any ATM outside the headquarters of the ministry, and bear the cost of less than 3 dollars, if the bank outside the framework of the Iraqi Trade Bank.

In a press statement last March, Christine Goz, head of the International Monetary Fund's mission to Iraq, said Iraq needed more reforms to create fiscal space for overall growth, boost the business environment, reduce corruption and reform the banking sector to support growth. Led by the private sector, and diversification into the economy.

He pointed out that the sharp drop in oil prices caused the decline of the total international reserves of Iraq, and that the total public debt rose from 32% to 64% of GDP in the period from 2014 to 2016, and slowed growth in credit and increased non-performing loans at the state-owned banks and banks Especially during the past year.

Source (New Arab + Anatolia).

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