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India - Iraq
In our current engagement with the Gulf region, Iraq should get a prominent place because of our long standing political, economic, cultural ties with Iraq and the trade & economic opportunities it offers, particularly after the beginning of the reconstruction phase of the country.
India was one of the first countries to respond to UN Secretary General’s appeal and pledged a human assistance of US $ 20 million for the Iraqi people. India currently provides about 150 training slots to Iraq under various programs of the Government of India. Indian Oil Corporation has been providing training in India to the Iraqi oil officials on various projects/subjects related with downstream oil sector. So far 18 such training programs have been organized.
In Order to institutionalize the economic and technical cooperation between India and Iraq, both countries established a Joint Commission (JC) some years ago. The last meeting of the JC was held in Delhi in May 2007 which focused on the role India can play in the reconstruction of Iraq. In spite of Government of India’s full support to the Iraqi people and the reconstruction phase of the country, there are not many Indian companies at present involved with the rebuilding phase of Iraq.
Statistics of bilateral trade with Iraq are as follows :
Value in million US$ |
| YEAR |
India's Export to Iraq |
India's Import from Iraq |
TOTAL TRADE |
2003-2004 |
75.17 |
0.14 |
75.3 |
2004-2005 |
131.19 |
1.12 |
132.31 |
2005-2006 |
155.94 |
2.05 |
157.99 |
| 2006-2007 |
203.31 |
5,521.71 |
5,725.02 |
2007-2008 |
271.19 |
6,832.50 |
7,103.69 |
| 2008-2009(Apr-Dec) |
268.55 |
7,042.50 |
12,828.71 |
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(Source: Ministry of Commerce & Industry, New Delhi)
Major Items of export from Iraq to India: - Crude Oil, Organic Chemicals, Salt, Wool, Pulp of Wood.
Major Items of import by Iraq from India: - Articles of Iron & Steel, Machinery, Sugar, Dairy Products, Pharmaceuticals Products, Cereals, Tea etc.
Fact Sheet – Iraq
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Area 441,839 sq. kms.
Population 31.2mm (2009 - estimates)
Main Provinces Baghdad, Nineveh, Basra, Babil,
Neighboring Countries Iran, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey, Kuwait and Jordan
Climate Very Hot Summers, Cool Winters
Hottest Months July & Sept (24o - 43o C)
Coldest Month Jan (4 - 16o C)
Driest Month June, Sept
Wettest Month March
Language Mainly Arabic; English is not that popular
Currency New Iraqi Dinar (Since Oct 2003)
1US$ = 1,153.55 IQD, 1 INR = 24.9284 IQD
Time (as on 28.01.2010)
Measures Metric system (some local measures are used unofficially)
Public Holidays National Day (anniversary of the 1958 overthrow of the Hashemite regime- July 14th July) remains a public holiday. The month of Ramadan is not a public holiday, but significantly reduces the working day. Eid al-Fitr (three days marking the end of Ramadan) and Eid al-Adha (feast of the sacrifice) are widely observed. The dates of Islamic holidays are based on the lunar calendar.
Natural Resources Oil, Natural Gas, Phosphate, Sulphur
Major Industries Petroleum, Petrochemical, Construction
Material, Food Processing etc |
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Main Economic Indicators-2007
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GDP (US $ bn) 60.1
GDP- PPP (US $ bn) 100.0
GDP -Per Capita (US $) 2078
GDP-Per Capita (PPP- US $) 3536
Real GDP Growth 5%
Exports (US $ Bn) 38.1
Imports (US$Bn) 25.7
External Debt (US $ Bn) 100.9
Inflation (%) 5.4
Oil Production 2.11 mn bbl / per day
Major Export Partners USA (46.7%), Italy (10.7%), Spain (6.2%), Canada (6.2%)
Major Import Partners Syria (26.5%), Turkey (20.5%), USA (11.8%), Jordon (7.2%)
Major Imports Agricultural commodities, medicine and machinery
Major Export items Crude oil, Phosphate, Sulphur
Oil Reserves 115 Bn Barrels
Natural Gas Proven Reserves 3.17 Trillion cm
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