KRG’s My Account initiative signs up 500K Public employees, 'resolving salary issues hinges on biometric registration'

Peregraf

The Kurdistan Region has witnessed the enrollment of 500,000 salaried employees in the KRG's privately managed My Account (Hazhmari Mn) initiative for electronic salary payments. The deputy prime minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) emphasizes that resolving the salary dispute with Baghdad is not possible without the implementation of the biometric system.

The most recent data from the KRG Ministry of Finance indicates that there are 500,000 salaried employees in Sulaimaniyah, Erbil, and Duhok who are registered in the My Account banking initiative and possess bank accounts. To date, 280,000 debit cards have been issued to subscribers of this program, and over 200 ATMs have been set up at 67 various locations.

In the previous month, a total of 120,000 employees in Sulaimaniyah, Erbil, and Duhok were paid their salaries through digital means as part of the My Account initiative. The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) intends to establish bank accounts for over one million public sector employees by the conclusion of this year.

In the context of e-government and biometric processes, Qubad Talabani, the KRG Deputy Prime Minister, asserts that "Prior to the implementation of biometrics, we lacked knowledge regarding the identity of employees, the individuals to whom we would disburse salaries, and the existence of those receiving dual salaries or ghost employees."

Qubad Talabani pointed out that the lack of biometric registration for public employees will hinder the resolution of salary disputes with Baghdad and obstruct the progress of e-government initiatives. He stressed that "Biometrics is the first and most crucial step for data governance in the Kurdistan Region."