Expert calls for protecting local production

Economic expert Salam Semeisim stressed the need for protecting the Iraqi production to provide equivalent competition with the imported commodities, calling for forming a committee from both public and private sectors to protect the industrial product.
She added that the Iraqi markets suffer currently from a state of chaos due to the lack of governmental control to protect the Iraqi economy, stressing that the governmental control should be implemented through drafting clear principles.
She blamed the Iraqi government for not activating the Consumer Protection Council and its laws passed since 2010, stressing the importance of such body that protects the citizens from damaged commodities.
She added that the Iraqi market is not controlled due to the inaction of the Iraqi government to take serious steps to protect the people from the current state of chaos dominating the market. She blamed the governmental approach for the monopolization and the entry of expired commodities to the local market during the recent period.
She stressed the need for activating the decisions related to the protection of local production, saying that the government should work to attract the Iraqi people to buy the local products to pave the way for containing the importation during the coming period. She added that the country should depend on the local products during the current period in the light of the current economic situation.
She added that the foreign currency reserves have declined to $49bn, due to the drop of world oil prices, during a press conference at the bank’s main office.
She added, “The central bank runs nearly 2000 money exchange offices, 30 money transfer firms and 65 banks, all outlets for foreign currency sales as part of the currency auction, and are sufficient to cover the central bank’s daily dollar sales.”