The Cabinet held its weekly regular meeting on Tuesday in Baghdad under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi.

At the start of the meeting, the Prime Minister referred to challenges the government faced, and its focus on providing servicesand meeting the needs of citizens, including laying the foundation stone for 1000 new schools throughout Iraq as part of the Iraqi-Chinese agreement, out of a total of 8000 schools.

The Prime Minister also briefed the Cabinet on his successful official visits to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Iran, where he discussed issues of common interestin relation to the economy, energy and food security, and Iraq’s role in reducing tensionsin the region.

The Cabinet hosted the official in charge of managing the Ministry of Health, who presented a detailed report on the Coronavirus pandemic, as the country is witnessing a new wave that has led to an increase in the number of positive cases. The Ministry of Health official underscored thatthemost effective action to contain the virusremains for citizens to follow preventativemeasures and receive the approved vaccines.

The Cabinet discussed a number ofother issues related to the work of the Ministry of Health, including the appointment of medical and health professionals, and agreed the following:

• The Ministry of Finance to providethe amount of (169423803000) dinars to the Ministry of Health for the purpose of appointing medical and health professionals, who are covered by the Medical and Health Progression Law (No 6 of 2000) and its amendments.

• Approve of the recommendations of the 26th meeting of the Executive Order Committee (No 45 of 2018) in relation todevelopment the necessary mechanisms and solutions for the completion of public hospital projects.

• The Ministry of Finance to provide the Ministry of Health with the amount of 45 million dollars for the project of neonatal intensive care services.

The Cabinet discussed other items on its agenda, and agreed several decisions including:

Forming a committee for the purpose of transferring lecturers, administrators, contract employees and metre readers in all ministries and bodies not affiliated with a ministry, and appointing the top graduates and holders of higher degrees. The committee will submit its recommendations to the Prime Minister for a decision.