Open for business

A government ministry building under construction and progressing in the iraqi capital of Baghdad.
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Government ministries don’t have the pedigree of making important decisions. The ingrained system is that everything goes up to the highest level.

“There have been instances of $40,000 projects which aren’t signed off because trade and development contracts do not have a framework in place. There is a tendency to send everything towards the prime minister’s office for authorisation,” says Soper.

For companies looking to set up in Iraq and finding office space in the International Zone (formerly the Green Zone), the consensus is be prepared to progress slowly.

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“There are companies on the ground in the International Zone which have facilities for rent – either for flying visits, kitted out as a standard board room, as well as temporary office units,” explains Soper.

For long-term partnerships the model appears to be that once companies have the confidence to set up a local joint venture that will facilitate moving out of the International Zone.

The market is clearly not one for the feint hearted, and much ground work must be laid before embarking on your business plan. Rich pickings won’t come quickly, and finding a suitable JV partner looks to be the best vehicle for medium-term penetration.

For the firms that successfully crack the major projects, the rewards are unparalleled in the coming decade.

Growing cement supplies
The Ministry of Industry and Minerals has been encouraging the licensing of new cement producers, as well as private public partnerships to rehabilitate major state-run cement factories.

Lafarge, a building materials company, has taken advantage of the opportunity represented by Iraq and has built two plants in the country whose total capacity now reaches one quarter of domestic Iraqi production.