Shafaq News / The Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi stressed today, Monday, the importance of overcoming the repercussions of Covid-19 and the "accumulated residuals of mismanagement".

In a statement received by Shafaq News agency, Al-Kadhimi's media office said that the latter headed the meeting of the Higher Population Council today, in the presence of a number of ministers, heads and officials of the relevant departments.

The Council discussed the topics listed in the agenda that included, reviewing what current status of the general census of population and houses and its preparatory work, as well as the support provided by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), which included support for the census process and the Population policy programs.

The statement indicated that the council touched upon the national document on population policies, management of work in the document currently approved and the process of updating it.

Al-Kadhimi clarified, according to the statement, the administrative and planning importance of an integrated population census within a general population and housing census, stressing that the census is the basis for any development structure that looks forward to the future. He also said that the conditions and challenges facing Iraq today obligates us to proceed with confident and strong measures to overcome the repercussions of Covid-19 pandemic crisis and the legacy of accumulated mismanagement.

Al-Kadhimi indicated that the general census is a strong document that supports any future electoral process, confirms its justice and good management and provides it with a solid database.

The Council decided to instruct the Ministry of Planning and the working team to start preparing all the requirements of the census, within a time period to be determined by specialists, in coordination with the ministries of health and finance, and identify the most prominent obstacles and requirements in order to take the necessary decisions regarding them.