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Federal regions of Iraq
According to the Constitution of Iraq, the Republic of Iraq is composed of the capital, federal regions, decentralised governorates, as well as local administrations. Article 117 of the constitution recognises Kurdistan Region as a federal region, and as of July 2023, it remains the sole federal region in the country. Some additional federal regions were proposed after 2005, such as Basra Region.
The post-2005 Iraqi federal model of governance as outlined by the constitution includes the notion of decentralization and devolution of power from the federal government to administrative divisions, that is, governorates and regions. Both governorates and regions in Iraq are given the constitutional guarantee to exercise a degree of local self-rule in non-federal matters.
One or more governorates in Iraq may organize into a region based on a request to be voted on in a referendum submitted in one of the following two methods:
Iraq’s political system is asymmetric, and the only defining federal and devolutionary characteristic of Iraq is the hitherto semi-autonomy of Kurdistan Region, while the rest of Iraq remains unitary. Recent developments in the internal politics of the country, including a rising trend of centralism and systematic erosion of Kurdistan Region’s already fragile semi-autonomy, have prompted some to cast doubt on the future of federalism and decentralisation in Iraq.[citation needed]
Section four of the constitution defines the exclusive powers of the Federal government and section five defines the authorities of the federal regions. It does not explicitly describe the federal regions as possessing "autonomy", however, the authorities of the regions are divided into two kinds:
For instance, the constitution delegates the authority to exercise "executive, legislative, and judicial powers in accordance with [the] Constitution" to federal regions in those matters outside of the federal government's exclusive jurisdiction. Also, in case of legal dispute, the regions are allowed to either “amend the application of” federal legislation in the region or regional laws will take priority in areas related to devolved or shared authorities respectively, as long as they don't contradict with the constitution.
Federal regions are also allowed to establish and organize the internal security forces for the region such as police, security forces, and guards of the regions. Examples of exclusive federal government authorities are ratifying international treaties and formulating foreign policy.
Interpreting the constitution, and settling disputes between the federal government, governorates and regions and matters related to constitutionality of all laws are settled by the Federal Supreme Court. Since February 2024, the Federal Supreme Court has expanded its authorities to include the power to amend laws passed by the legislative bodies of federal regions, such as those passed by the Kurdistan Region Parliament.
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Federal regions of Iraq
According to the Constitution of Iraq, the Republic of Iraq is composed of the capital, federal regions, decentralised governorates, as well as local administrations. Article 117 of the constitution recognises Kurdistan Region as a federal region, and as of July 2023, it remains the sole federal region in the country. Some additional federal regions were proposed after 2005, such as Basra Region.
The post-2005 Iraqi federal model of governance as outlined by the constitution includes the notion of decentralization and devolution of power from the federal government to administrative divisions, that is, governorates and regions. Both governorates and regions in Iraq are given the constitutional guarantee to exercise a degree of local self-rule in non-federal matters.
One or more governorates in Iraq may organize into a region based on a request to be voted on in a referendum submitted in one of the following two methods:
Iraq’s political system is asymmetric, and the only defining federal and devolutionary characteristic of Iraq is the hitherto semi-autonomy of Kurdistan Region, while the rest of Iraq remains unitary. Recent developments in the internal politics of the country, including a rising trend of centralism and systematic erosion of Kurdistan Region’s already fragile semi-autonomy, have prompted some to cast doubt on the future of federalism and decentralisation in Iraq.[citation needed]
Section four of the constitution defines the exclusive powers of the Federal government and section five defines the authorities of the federal regions. It does not explicitly describe the federal regions as possessing "autonomy", however, the authorities of the regions are divided into two kinds:
For instance, the constitution delegates the authority to exercise "executive, legislative, and judicial powers in accordance with [the] Constitution" to federal regions in those matters outside of the federal government's exclusive jurisdiction. Also, in case of legal dispute, the regions are allowed to either “amend the application of” federal legislation in the region or regional laws will take priority in areas related to devolved or shared authorities respectively, as long as they don't contradict with the constitution.
Federal regions are also allowed to establish and organize the internal security forces for the region such as police, security forces, and guards of the regions. Examples of exclusive federal government authorities are ratifying international treaties and formulating foreign policy.
Interpreting the constitution, and settling disputes between the federal government, governorates and regions and matters related to constitutionality of all laws are settled by the Federal Supreme Court. Since February 2024, the Federal Supreme Court has expanded its authorities to include the power to amend laws passed by the legislative bodies of federal regions, such as those passed by the Kurdistan Region Parliament.