Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – Iraq’s Ministry of Transport announced on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, that engineering designs for the strategic Iraq Development Road project have entered their final phases and will be fully completed before the end of the current year, clearing the path for ground-level execution to commence in 2027.
The ministry noted that the transit corridor will generate over one million jobs across its lifespan, including 100,000 opportunities during Phase 1.
Speaking to Al Iraqiya News in remarks monitored by the Iraqi News Agency (INA), Ministry of Transport Spokesperson Ali Al-Khalidi stated that technical designs for the high-speed railway network have surpassed a 95% completion rate, while engineering blueprints for the parallel motorway stand at 92%.
Al-Khalidi characterized the multi-billion-dollar transit corridor as a generational economic artery connecting the Gulf to Europe, with the project’s first operational phase slated for completion by 2033.
The dual-track road and railway network originates at the Grand Faw Port in Basra and traverses ten governorates and districts—passing through Dhi Qar, Al-Muthanna, Al-Diwaniyah, Najaf, Karbala, southern Anbar, Abu Ghraib in Baghdad, Samarra, and Mosul, before terminating at Fishkhabur on the Iraq–Turkey border.
Al-Khalidi noted that technical and commercial negotiations remain underway with international infrastructure consortiums, alongside ongoing coordination with the Turkish government through bilateral working committees, affirming that final contracts for primary engineering procurement and construction (EPC) packages have not yet been awarded.
Beyond direct transit capacity, the corridor’s master plan integrates modern passenger stations, logistical logistics hubs, smart communities, and dedicated industrial and residential zones along the route, forming an integrated economic spine designed to diversify Iraq’s national economy.
