Forum Programme
Day 1: Tuesday, 10 October 2023
(Venue: Rotana Hotel)
08:00 Registration
09:30 Welcome and Introduction
09:35 MERI’s Opening Remarks:
- Dlawer Ala’Aldeen, President of MERI
09:50 Session 1- Nineveh: People’s Needs, Aspirations and Perceptions
- Osama Al-Gharizi, United States Institute of Peace
- Najeeb Mikhaeel Moussa, Chaldean Archbishop of Mosul & Aqra
- Najim Al-Jubouri, Governor of Nineveh
- Zaidan Khalaf, Advisor to the Prime Minister of Iraq
- Jessica Findley, The International Republican Institute (Moderator)
10:55 Break
11:20 Session 2- Iraq’s Energy Priorities: Oil, Gas and Renewables
- Ahmed Mufti, Deputy Minister of Natural Resources, KRG
- Abdulla Al-Qadi, Executive Director, Crescent Petroleum, Iraq
- Falah Al-Amiri, Advisor to the Prime Minister of Iraq & Former SOMO Chief
- Zainab Rabee, Journalist, Al-Sharqiya (Moderator)
12:20 Panel Switch
12:30 Session 3- Women Empowerment in Institutional Leadership
- Muna Yaqo, The Kurdistan Human Rights Board
- Payman Ramazan, President of Raparin University
- Ashraf Al-Dahan, Director General of the Non-Governmental Organisations, Baghdad
- Suzan Aref, Women Empowerment (Speaker/Moderator)
13:30 Lunch Break
14:45 Session 4- Iraq and International Partners: Engagement, Mutual Perceptions & Shared Visions (A)
- Stephen Hichen, The UK Ambassador to Iraq
- Thomas Seiler, Head of European Union Delegation in Iraq
- Henning Speck, National Security Advisor, CDU/CSU group, German Bundestag
- Farhad Alaaldin, Advisor to the Prime Minister of Iraq on Foreign Affairs (Speaker/Moderator)
15:45 Break
16:15 Session 5- The Political System and State-Building in Iraq (A)
- Ammar Al-Hakim, Leader of the Al-Hikma Movement
- Dlawer Ala’Aldeen, President of MERI, Moderator
16:50 Panel Switch
17:00 Session 6: Institutionalisation of Federal-Regional Relations: A Process Long Overdue
- Nechirvan Barzani, President of Kurdistan Region of Iraq
- Hiwa Osman, Journalist (Moderator)
17:45 Closing Remarks
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Day 2: Wednesday, 11 October 2023
08:00 Registration
09:30 Welcome and Introduction
09:45 Session 7- The Al-Sudani Cabinet: Pledges, Progress & Prospects
- Aqeel Al-Khazali, Advisor to the Prime Minister of Iraq
- Mohammed Al-Najjar, Advisor to the Prime Minister of Iraq
- Muthanna Amin, Member of Council of Representatives, Iraq
- Noor Al-Majid, Journalist, Iraq 24 (Moderator)
11:50 Break
11:20 Session 8- The Politics of the News Media: Trends and Challenges Governance
- Nayla Tueni, Chairperson, Al-Nahar, Lebanon
- Sarmad Altaei, Journalist, Editor +964 Arabic
- Hiwa Osman, Journalist (Speaker/Moderator)
12:20 Panel Switch
12:35 Session 9- The Political System and State-Building in Iraq (C)
- Bafel Talabani, Patriotic Union of Kurdistan
- Dlawer Ala’Aldeen, President of MERI, Moderator
13:15 Lunch Break
14:30 Session 10: US Policy in Iraq and its Neighbourhood
- Victoria Taylor, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Iraq and Iran, State Department, USA
- Kamaran Palani, Middle East Research Institute (Moderator)
15:00 Panel Switch
15:10 Session 11- Iraq and International Partners: Engagement, Mutual Perceptions & Shared Visions (B)
- Christiane Hohmann, German Ambassador to Iraq
- Hans Sandee, The Kingdom of Netherlands’ Ambassador to Iraq
- Fawzi Hariri, Chief of Staff, Presidency of Kurdistan Region
- Lukman Faily, The Iraqi Ambassador to Germany (Speaker/Moderator)
16:10 Break
16: 40 Session 12: Decentralisation or Re-centralisation: That is the Question
- Qubad Talabani, Deputy Prime Minister, Kurdistan Regional Government
- Andrea Nasi, The Austrian Chargé D’affaires in Iraq (Speaker/Moderator)
17:10 Panel Switch
17:20 Session 13: Sinjar Agreement: Progress and Barriers
- Rebar Ahmed, The KRG Minister of Interior
- Claudio Cordone, Deputy Head of UNAMI
- Khogir Wirya, Research Fellow, MERI (Moderator)
18:20 Closing Remarks
18:30 End of MERI Forum 2023