Speaking during the Delphi Forum Slemani, Qubad Talabani, Deputy Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Region, outlined a strategic roadmap to drive economic diversification, rural development, and women's empowerment. He highlighted leveraging international partnerships to position the Kurdistan Region as an active contributor to regional stability and Iraq's national growth.

The second day of the annual Delphi Forum Slemani convened Sunday at the Culture Factory’s Foundation Hall, gathering global diplomats and ministers to address regional security and economic diversification under the patronage of Qubad Talabani. 

Strategic Importance of Hosting Delphi Forum 

Talabani emphasized the strategic importance of hosting the summit in the Kurdistan Region amid regional geopolitical and economic challenges. “Here, these questions are not abstract. We live them. We govern through them. And we know that resilience is no longer optional.”

He stressed that platforms like this forum are critical for uniting leaders and ideas during times of global volatility. 

Talabani noted that strategic partnerships with the US, Europe, and regional allies deliver essential institutional knowledge, credibility, and long-term cooperation that extend far beyond financial capital.

Sulaymaniyah's Role in Widening Regional Dialogue 

The Deputy Prime Minister stated that Sulaymaniyah, with its illustrious legacy of cultural innovation, intellectual discourse, education, and literary achievement, can play an essential role in the region, while Kurdistan as a whole can help widen the space for regional dialogue. 

“It has shaped how Kurdistan thinks, and I believe it can help shape how Kurdistan grows,” he said, adding that Kurdistan can also “help widen the space for dialogue while others are trying to narrow it.”

Economic Roadmap to Empower Women, Youth, and Private Sector 

Talabani further told participants that the government is fostering conditions to empower the private sector, modernize public services, and enhance the business climate to create an economy where entrepreneurs, investors, and youth can identify tangible opportunities.

He underlined that sustainable progress requires comprehensive regional development, noting that a resilient economy depends on strategically investing in the distinct agricultural, industrial, and technological strengths of smaller districts and rural communities. 

Talabani said bringing economic opportunity directly to local populations is essential to reducing regional inequalities and strengthening the social contract.

He asserted that empowering women and placing them at the center of society, governance, and the economy is a strategic necessity for national progress, noting that gender inclusion directly strengthens institutions and drives economic productivity.

 “I've long believed that advancing women's rights is not a side issue or a symbolic gesture, but a core part of building a modern and confident society. That work must continue, not through slogans, but through real access, real representation, and real opportunity,” he remarked.

Kurdistan and Iraq Have ‘Linked Futures’ for Success 

He noted that the Kurdistan Region and Iraq can emerge stronger by leveraging trusted international partnerships, strengthening institutions, supporting innovation, and building resilience through economic diversification while helping shape regional developments.

“Iraq has the regional significance to become stronger in the years ahead. And I believe just as strongly that the success of the Kurdistan region and the success of Iraq are connected. These are not competing futures; they are linked futures,” he affirmed.

He said that the Kurdistan Region "must be part of Iraq's success story, not at the margins of it and not as a reluctant participant, but as an active partner in building a more prosperous, more connected, and more resilient country."

Deputy Prime Minister also said that tIraq possesses the diplomatic capacity to confidently engage with both Eastern and Western global powers by balancing its strategic proximity to Iran with deep investments in its partnership with the United States. 

By actively collaborating with Europe, Russia, and neighboring Turkey, he added, the country is pursuing a mature form of statecraft designed to protect its sovereignty, deepen regional integration, and expand international partnerships simultaneously.