The Impact of Covid-19 in Water-Stressed Iraq

The consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic in Iraq, in parallel with the country’s water issues, are exacerbating existing health, economic, socio-political, and security challenges. This brief outlines the ways in which COVID-19 interacts with and impacts these four pressing and interrelated challenges. The analysis focuses on the impacts on Iraq as a whole and the four provinces selected for further engagement by the WPS partnership: Basrah, Dhi-Qar, Wasit, and Missan. It also looks at the broader set of considerations on the need for an integrated approach for addressing water, security and health challenges in the country.

The report was prepared by Dorith Kool, Laura Birkman and Giorgio Berti for the Water, Peace & Security (WPS) partnership.