Diyala water project stalled for 14 years despite 90% spending, official says

BAGHDAD, Iraq — The director of the Jadidat al-Shat subdistrict in Iraq’s Diyala province said a water project awarded to a French company in 2012 remains unfinished 14 years after its 390-day deadline. Talib al-Hazreci told local media that total spending has reached about 50 billion Iraqi dinars, with more than 90% of the budget already disbursed, yet completion has risen only from 90% to 93% over the past year. Al-Hazreci attributed the delays to land and technical problems, adding that work in recent years has been carried out by the al-Faw General Company. He said the project’s designed water production capacity of 4,000 cubic meters per hour has been reduced to 2,000 cubic meters, and that it is intended to supply drinking water to more than 70,000 residents in parts of Jadidat al-Shat and the Habbib subdistrict. The director said the project has not been officially handed over to the Water Department because the contractor has not met operational requirements, leaving the facility out of service for more than a decade. He noted that the area continues to face water shortages and called on the relevant authorities to complete the remaining work and bring the project online.