New Iraq and Germany Cooperation Agreement Aims for 10 Million Tourists

In a recent development, the Iraqi Tourism Authority has partnered with The German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ) with a collective aim of drawing 10 million tourists to Iraq in 2026.

This comes as part of Iraq’s ongoing efforts to boost their tourism economy, with this program set to maintain and sustain multiple archeological and heritage sites of the country in order to attract more tourists. The plan was originally going to extend to 2035, but has since been updated to extend to 2045.

This is not the first time GIZ has worked with Iraq to improve tourism or focus on agricultural development. One major project involving GIZ was the Gashtukal initiative, a partnership between the Ministry of Agriculture and the Board of Tourism, in which GIZ helped develop agrotourism in Kurdistan, a region in Iraq. Their efforts included training local farmers, helping to develop tourist sites and even providing policy advice. However, the current project proves to be more ambitious as it will help the entire county’s agrotourism, rather than one specific region. GIZ further supports Iraq’s development projects, with ongoing initiatives across Iraq, such as climate resilience efforts within the country.

The Iraqi tourism Authority also has plans for the heritage site, with a major one being the reopening of the Iraqi National Museum in 2026. The museum had originally been closed due to renovations and the return of multiple artifacts.

Source: GIZ