KRG Deputy Minister of Planning Sirwan Mohammed stated that the combined poverty rate in the Kurdistan Region and Iraq is 17.5%, with Iraq excluding Kurdistan at 19.3% and the Kurdistan Region itself at a much lower 8.6%.

Speaking to Channel8, Mohammed said the lowest poverty rate among the provinces of the Kurdistan Region is in Erbil at 5.9%, followed by Sulaymaniyah and Duhok.

Mohammed noted that the estimated poverty line for the years 2023–2024 was 137,000 Iraqi dinars per person per month.

Census Coordination Hindered by Political Decisions

Mohammed revealed that talks with the Iraqi Ministry of Planning began in December last year to compare the 1957 census with the upcoming 2024 census, with the KRG conducting four visits to Baghdad.

He mentioned that while the Iraqi Ministry of Interior has expressed its readiness to assist in announcing the census results, the Iraqi Ministry of Planning has shown reluctance to take action; although it wishes to release the results, it is hindered by decisions of the Iraqi Council of Ministers and, therefore, does not intend to provide support.

He added that the final step is sending a letter to confirm readiness to form the technical committee in coordination with the Federal Interior Ministry, but the process is currently stalled because the committee head is on Hajj.

Latest Data from Iraqi Census: Kurdistan Ranks Lowest in Poverty

According to the latest Iraqi census, approximately 17.5% of the population in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region live below the poverty line—roughly one in every five people. The Kurdistan Region maintains the lowest poverty rate among all areas surveyed.

Breakdown of poverty rates in the Kurdistan Region:

• Erbil: 6%
• Sulaymaniyah: 8%
• Duhok: 15%

By contrast, many Iraqi provinces have significantly higher poverty levels:

• Muthanna: 44%
• Babylon: 34%
• Al-Qadisiyah: 29%
• Basra: 28%
• Najaf: 25%
• Anbar: 21%
• Karbala: 20%
• Saladin and Wasit: 19%
• Diyala: 17%
• Nineveh and Maysan: 16%
• Baghdad and Dhi Qar: 14%
• Kirkuk: 10%

Population Figures

The census also indicates that Iraq’s population is 45.4 million, with the Kurdistan Region accounting for 6.37 million of that total.