Can new PM make Iraq's grand plans a reality?
Iraq's new prime minister is making the economy a priority, but some question whether he will be able to tackle longstanding roadblocks that threaten his plan's success.
BAGHDAD — New Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi recently submitted an ambitious development and financial plan to parliament, but his proposals will face major challenges — namely a lack of revenues, spreading financial and administrative corruption, a weak administrative system and a struggling private sector.
Abdul Mahdi, who was sworn in Oct. 24, has held important economic positions in the past. He was Iraq's finance minister in 2004 and oil minister in 2014. In articles he published in his Al-Adala newspaper, he portrays himself as an economist capable of addressing the country's crises.
