A look at Kurdistan's IT Department

By Qassim Khidhir


The Kurdish Globe

Long-term IT goals of the government cover broad spectrum of IT

The Kurdistan Region Information Technology Department works to computerize Kurdistan Regional
Government entities.

Until now in Kurdistan Region, if a ministry wanted to deliver a letter to another ministry, it did so manually. That's because government establishments in Kurdistan Region are not on a computerized network.

In 2007, the Kurdistan Regional Government laid the foundation for the first Information Technology Training Center in Erbil city. It was funded and built by the Korea International Cooperation Agency following the former KRG Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani's request to the Korean government to support IT in Kurdistan.

Last week, with the aim of understanding more about the business needs and strategic objectivities of the individual entities within KRG and their own views on how technology can support the delivery of their visions, the IT department held a two-day workshop. Representatives of the ministries discussed the vision of IT according to the needs of their ministries.

"Here in Kurdistan we still don't understand what information security means," said Ibrahim Rostam, inspector in the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs. "We need a network to connect all the ministries together and connect each of the ministries to its branches," said Rostam. He also said that his ministry needs a good IT system to share its information with the citizens.

Improving effectiveness and transparency in government, reducing routine, sharing information with citizens, information security, and helping investors get information and data easily were the most important visions the representatives suggested.

KRG representatives remarked that some of the ministries do not have IT departments, and moreover, in many of the ministries, there are no well-trained or skilled IT employees. "We want to create the right process in order to make a better future for the people," said Botan Mahmud Othman, head of the IT Department.

Othman told The Kurdish Globe that IT alone cannot do anything. "We need support from the government." He added that government officials are very keen on developing IT within the government structure. In order to draw on the experience of other governments and organizations to ensure that our ambitions are realistic, said Othman, the IT Department has brought in IT experts from the UK, Scotland, Bahrain, Geneva, and Northern Ireland to Kurdistan Region. He also mentioned that Price Waterhouse Coopers is partnering with the Kurdistan IT Department.

The IT Department currently is implementing its first phase, which is writing a draft about vision, mission, and objects of information technology of Kurdistan Region.

And the IT's long-term plan and goal is to develop common information and communications technology, support economic development, modernize public administration and service delivery through electronic government, and enhance KRG's technology capacity.

Kurdish filmmakers call for conference

The Kurdish Globe


The Ministry of Culture must become more engaged, say directors

Erbil's Short-Film Festival turns into a tougher discussion about Kurdish directors and the cinema itself.

Day two of the Erbil Short-Film Festival turned into a heated debate as the crowd began arguing about problems. Well-known Kurdish film director Bahman Ghobadi described Kurdish cinema as "a child who does not have a mother and father." Ghobadi said the child will collapse if no one holds his hands and takes care of him. "There is a great opportunity in front of the Kurdish cinema because Kurdish cinema has its own signature and culture." Ghobadi also criticized officials in Iraqi Kurdistan Region for not seriously developing Kurdish cinema.

The crowd remarked that the KRG does not have a clear vision regarding Kurdish cinema, and called for an immediate conference with the attendance of government officials to discuss the problems. "It is a good thing to hold a conference, because we need politicians and government officials to listen to us; our biggest problem is that no one listens to us," said Shakhawan Edrees, General Director of Erbil Cinema at the Ministry of Culture.

Edrees noted that eight months ago he was nominated to become the General Director of Erbil Cinema, but he has not had the opportunity to talk with the Minister of Culture for even one hour to discuss issues regarding his department. He admitted that the government has a good budget for the cinema, but it won't distribute the money fairly due to nepotism.

Not only the government, but film directors faced criticism by festival attendances. One attendee complained that Kurdish film directors make films only to show them in the festivals in other countries, not for people in Kurdistan. "Why does the government give money to directors to make films while the directors never show their films to the people of Kurdistan," asked the attendee. The director asked how they could show their films to people in Kurdistan when there are no cinema halls in the region.

Kurdish directors have made a remarkable number of films, and many of them have received international awards. Most have been shown at film festivals in other countries, particularly in Europe, while people in Kurdistan have yet to see many of them.

Erbil city used to have four cinema halls, one of which was destroyed; another was sold. Only two remain open. However, they are suffering financially and may not be open much longer. Meanwhile, the current cinemas in Erbil have bad reputations because they showed pornography in the '90s. Now people rarely visit these cinemas. In addition, there is no plan by the government or private companies to build new cinema halls.

At the Third Erbil Short Film Festival, 15 short films and six documentary films were presented. An independent committee will evaluate all the films, and the best one will receive the Golden Oak Award.