BAGHDAD, June 14 (Parliament Politics Magazine) – Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi officially canceled the $764 million Baghdad International Airport development project on Sunday following significant corruption suspicions. According to a government source, the decision stems from internal concerns regarding irregularities in both the contract terms and the tendering process.
The project, which was awarded last year, involved a 25-year public-private partnership contract. A consortium led by Luxembourg-based Corporación América Airports and the Iraqi firm Amwaj International was tasked with modernizing the capital’s primary aviation hub. The ambitious plan included the construction of a new passenger terminal designed to handle between 9 and 15 million travelers annually, the installation of 15 new boarding bridges, and the urgent rehabilitation of long-neglected runways.
The cancellation follows an aggressive anti-corruption campaign spearheaded by the Prime Minister, who recently established a specialized council to investigate government activities. While the project was originally structured to be fully financed by the private consortium requiring zero initial state investment officials reportedly identified red flags during a review of the bidding procedures. The winning consortium had secured the contract by pledging 43.05% of the airport’s annual revenue to the central treasury, outbidding a rival group that offered 38.05%.
The International Finance Corporation, a branch of the World Bank, had previously served as an adviser to help structure the investment prospectus and screen the 14 global companies that originally applied for the bid. Despite this oversight, the government opted to terminate the agreement as part of a broader move to scrutinize infrastructure projects across the country.
The airport, which has relied on terminal buildings constructed during the 1970s and 1980s, has seen almost no major upgrades for nearly 40 years due to multiple conflicts. Responsibility for the future of the facility now remains in limbo. The Ministry of Transport is currently drafting an internal proposal to restructure and merge its airport and air navigation directorates in an effort to manage the facility independently. This move aligns with a wider government shift, as officials have also recently scrapped a multibillion-dollar national railway expansion project to address state budget constraints.
