Independent ABCI Research Initiative
A Private-Sector Perspective on Iraq’s Next Decade
Iraq's next decade will not be defined only by oil prices or public expenditure.
Its long-term direction will depend on how effectively the country transforms its resources, population, capital and geographic position into productivity, businesses, employment and investment.
ABCI Iraq 2035 is an independent research framework examining the structural changes that could support a more diversified, productive and private-sector-driven Iraqi economy.
It is not a government strategy or official forecast.
A BASELINE FOR TRANSFORMATION
2024 census · results published 2025
Total Iraqi and foreign population. Final results announced 26 November 2025. The statistical reference date must be consulted in the full census tables; the announcement does not specify it.
2025
Derived from the World Bank’s 2025 oil-share estimate: 100% − 53%. Approximate complement, not a separately reported official series.
Measurement period not identified in the linked source
World Bank Iraq overview; not a live estimate.
Statement: February 2025 · survey period not stated
40% stated by the Central Bank on 26 February 2025. The announcement does not define the measured population, instrument coverage or survey period; comparisons require a consistent definition.
2024
2024
IMF source context.
Building a broader economic base beyond dependence on oil revenues, exports and public expenditure.
02Turning small businesses and entrepreneurial activity into formal, productive and scalable companies.
03Building a deeper capital ecosystem that connects viable opportunities with the appropriate form of finance.
04Moving from digital connectivity toward integrated data, digital productivity and responsible AI adoption.
05Expanding meaningful financial participation through payments, banking, credit, insurance and fintech.
06Turning Iraq’s energy resources into reliable, efficient and increasingly diversified power for the economy.
07Connecting healthcare delivery, financing and data into a more integrated patient-centered system.
08Connecting education with skills, employability, productivity and innovation.
09Developing competitive local production where Iraq has market scale, resources or export potential.
10Connecting transport, cities and logistics infrastructure to economic activity and regional trade.
11Turning Iraq’s religious, cultural, archaeological and natural assets into a broader visitor economy.
12Building institutions that can make decisions, coordinate implementation and measure outcomes more effectively.
2030 → 2035
ABCI Iraq 2035 does not treat 2035 as a distant endpoint.
By 2030, measurable evidence of structural change should already be visible across investment, energy, finance, digital government, industry, employment and institutional performance.
2030 is the execution test.
2035 is the direction of transformation.
An ABCI research assessment—not an annual government commitment.
Use the dedicated dashboard to explore measures, policy periods and qualitative research propositions. Dates and classifications remain attached to each entry.
Open the data dashboardMETHODOLOGY VERSION 1.0 · SEPTEMBER 2026
Each pillar connects a baseline and structural gap with interventions, an intermediate 2030 milestone and a longer-term 2035 direction. Official evidence and ABCI analysis remain distinct.
Read the methodologyABCI · BAGHDAD, IRAQ
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