Baghdad, 07 December 2021: Germany and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) have today signed a EUR 18.29 million agreement (US$ 21.78 million) to boost employment and economic opportunities for vulnerable communities in Iraq.   

The generous contribution is the second provided to the Building Resilience through Employment Promotion (BREP) project that focuses on strengthening the resilience of vulnerable communities by enhancing their economic empowerment. The project prioritizes vulnerable areas within Anbar, Diyala, Kirkuk, Ninewa and Salah Al-Din.   

This contribution brings Germany’s total support for the BREP project to EUR 48.29 million (US$ 57.07 million). The contribution is made available by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) with financing provided through Germany’s KfW Development Bank. With this renewed support, Germany has committed more than EUR 543 million to various UNDP-led reconstruction programmes in Iraq over the last six years.

“We are extremely grateful to Germany, one of our longest-standing partners, for this important contribution. This support is vital in ensuring we leave no one behind. Through this funding, at UNDP, we will bolster our efforts towards building resilience by creating sustainable livelihood opportunities for internally displaced persons, returnees and host communities. We hope to provide Iraqis with the opportunity to build forward better after suffering from years of conflict and instability,” said Zena Ali-Ahmad, UNDP Iraq Resident Representative.

German Chargé d’Affaires Peter Felten stated, “The creation of economic perspectives and employment opportunities is a prerequisite for sustainable recovery and resilience. Through our support to the successful BREP programme in close cooperation with UNDP, Germany helps to provide economic opportunities for people who have been severely affected by conflict. I trust that our engagement will help to create success stories that can be replicated by our Iraqi partners and serve as a blueprint for strengthening resilience of communities and promoting inclusive growth.

“We are very pleased that based on the funding by the German government, KfW is able to provide this grant of 18.3M EUR for BREP. With this additional amount, we will continue to strengthen the resilience of vulnerable communities by enhancing their economic empowerment and the reconstruction of conflict affected regions of Iraq,” Dr. Anna-Christine Janke, Director of KfW Office Iraq, added.   

Through BREP, the support from Germany will provide Iraqis with short and medium-term employment opportunities, enhancing skills in economically promising sectors such as construction and agriculture and strengthening the private sector through boosting small and medium enterprises.

Media Contact:  

Mrinalini Santhanam, Communications Specialist