Digitization of food ration forms delayed indefinitely in Sulaymaniyah

SULAYMANIYAH — The ongoing digitization of the food ration system in Sulaymaniyah has been delayed indefinitely, leaving residents unable to add new members to their ration cards and causing widespread frustration. The official overseeing the program has not provided a timeline for when the new registration process will commence.

The system has been outsourced to a private firm, but there have been chronic delays to the registration process.

In some areas, the delay has persisted for over a year, while in Sulaymaniyah, it has been 20 months since authorities were last able to officially register new births or allow newly married couples to obtain food ration forms. This delay is due to the transition from paper forms to plastic identification cards, known as digitized ration cards.

“More than 4,000 new names and many families in Sulaymaniyah are still waiting for registration,” said Aras Mohammed, Director of the Food Ration Program in Sulaymaniyah, speaking to 96Media. “Registration of new food ration forms is managed by a company. Until that company arrives and begins its work, no new registrations will be processed.”

The timeline for company’s operations remains unclear. Mohammed added, “In Duhok and Kirkuk, the company’s efforts were unsuccessful and ultimately rejected. Until the company’s procedures are established and the registration mechanism is in place, citizens should not attempt to register.”

Currently, 2,071,771 individuals are registered in the food ration system across Sulaymaniyah governorate, with 537,831 families receiving monthly food supplies through the program.

In mid-2023, Iraq began digitizing its ration card system, but the project was suspended due to technical issues and concerns from the Cyber Security Committee. While the process resumed in July in regions like Baghdad, Muthana, Najaf, and Dhi Qar, delays continue in other areas, including Sulaymaniyah.

The state-subsidized monthly food ration program began under the United Nations’ Oil-for-Food Programme in the 1990s and continued after the fall of Saddam Hussein’s regime in 2003, despite ongoing complaints about the quality and quantity of the rations.

On Dec. 19, 2022, the Iraqi Council of Ministers added five new items to the food rations for low-income families covered by the social welfare network. These additions include a kilogram of sugar, a liter of cooking oil, 200 grams of tea, 250 grams of powdered milk, and a kilogram of white flour.

Under the current Food Ration Program, each citizen receives seven food items: two kilograms of rice, one kilogram of sugar, a one-liter bottle of cooking oil, 400 grams of tomato paste, one kilogram of beans, and a supply of flour.

Despite the efforts to modernize the ration system, the delay has heightened concerns among citizens. The poverty rate in Iraq was last recorded at under 21% in 2018 for a population of approximately 43 million, according to Abdul Zahra al-Hindawi, spokesperson for the Ministry of Planning. However, no new poverty reports have been published despite the population now being estimated at over 46 million. Iraq plans to conduct its first census in 27 years in November, which is expected to provide updated data on poverty and other demographic factors.