As part of its ongoing commitment to promoting inclusive and sustainable industrial development, from 29th May to 4th June 2025 UNIDO ITPO Italy conducted an institutional mission to Iraq to take stock of completed activities, monitor the ongoing project, and lay the foundations for future successful collaborations between UNIDO, Italy and Iraq.

During the first leg of the mission in Basra and Nassiriya, the goal was to assess the autonomous progress of activities within the UNIDO Entrepreneurship Development Centers (EDCs), meeting with more than 30 local businesses and institutions — including members of the Iraqi Federation of Industries (IFI) and the Iraqi Federation of Chambers of Commerce (IFCC) — to explore future synergies and consolidate long-standing partnerships with the local entrepreneurial ecosystem, supported for years through UNIDO-led projects.

The second part of the mission took place in Baghdad, where UNIDO ITPO Italy held a high-level institutional meeting with Mr. Alaa Mousa Al-Shubbar, Director General at the Ministry of Industry and Minerals and focal point for both ITPO Italy and UNIDO HQ projects in Iraq. A separate meeting was held with Mr. Salar Saleh, newly appointed Chairman of the Italy–Iraq Business Council at IFCC, also attended by Mr. Raed Jamal Al-Sammarraie, UNIDO ITPO Italy's Delegate for 2024. The delegation also participated in a series of consultations organized by colleagues from UNIDO Headquarters, led by Ms. Hanan Hanzaz, Chief of the Arab Bureau, aimed at shaping the upcoming UNIDO Iraq Country Programme, involving key local stakeholders and institutional representatives.

Further engagements in Baghdad included a visit to the IFI for a meeting with President Mr. Adel Okab and a tour of the Business Center at IFI Headquarters — a facility equipped and made operational thanks to technical assistance from UNIDO ITPO Italy and the support of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI). A courtesy visit was also held with the new president and board of the Iraq Industrial Cities Corporation, long-standing beneficiaries of UNIDO ITPO Italy initiatives funded by the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS). In addition, the mission renewed its collaboration with Makers of Baghdad — a local innovation hub previously involved in joint activities, with the aim of exploring future synergies focused on youth entrepreneurship and innovation in agribusiness and fashion — and saw the participation in the Italian National Day celebrations, hosted by the Italian Ambassador to Iraq, H.E. Niccolò Fontana.

The positive outcome of UNIDO ITPO Italy’s mission to Iraq reaffirmed its strategic role in fostering local industrial development in the country, supporting youth and women entrepreneurship, and building sustainable business ecosystems in Iraq through multilateral cooperation and long-term commitment.