Introduction
Since mid-2014, the KRI has been affected by a serious economic crisis which has resulted in the deterioration of living conditions of its residents, made up not only of Iraqi-Kurdish citizens, but also of considerable numbers of Syrian refugees and Iraqi internally displaced persons (IDPs). The economic crisis due to the regional and global collapse in oil prices, on which the region's economy is dependent, exacerbated the already-challenging context for securing livelihoods, further strained by the costs of military operations against the Islamic State starting in June 2014. Furthermore, the general situation worsened at the end of September 2017 as a result of the political crisis between the KRI and the central Government, which led to territorial changes, restriction of movements of goods and people across all Northern Iraq.
Compared with the two other Governorates in KRI, Sulaymaniyah hosts the least in terms of number of IDPs and Refugees, and overall, those are residing in the sub-districts more than in the urban area of the Province’s capital. However, the ongoing economic crisis since 2014 and the most recent political crisis between the Kurdish Regional Government and the Federal one is affecting most people’s livelihoods in the Governorate. Due to the commercial and industrial importance of Sulaymaniyah for not only the KR-I but for whole Iraq, the above-mentioned crisis has a direct impact on the local economy, for both private and public sectors.
Since the first cases confirmed in February 2020 in Iraq, Sulaymaniyah has been affected by the spread of COVID-19 due to its proximity to Iran. The governorate has been experiencing multiple waves of cases and related lockdown measures that have impacted access to basic services, prices and employment in the area. Iraq is also facing a major economic crisis coupled with the impact of lockdown measures on economic activities, in particular for daily laborers and low-income workers. National and local restrictions also pose issues as movements between governorates are limited and lockdowns intermittently take place. This is further aggravated by the lack of social safety nets for the most vulnerable groups and the current inability to secure regular salaries for public sector employees and pensions/benefits, with loss of income affecting the majority of the households.