Iraq has launched the second phase of a major anti-corruption and arbitration initiative with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), backed by European Union (EU) funding, to tackle graft linked to natural resources, environmental governance and climate policy, while strengthening institutional integrity and judicial capacity. This move, highlighted in comments by the United States Special Envoy to Iraq and senior Iraqi and EU officials, aligns with Baghdad’s wider reform agenda and the EU’s “Greening Iraq” priorities, following a marked improvement in Iraq’s standing on the global Transparency Index.
New phase of ACAI links anti-corruption to climate and natural resources
As reported by the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq and UNDP country communications, the Government of Iraq and UNDP formally launched the second phase of the Anti-Corruption and Arbitration Initiatives (ACAI II) in Baghdad on 18 November 2025, with financial support from the European Union. According to UNDP’s Iraq office, ACAI II aims to
“transform how Iraq fights corruption and protects its natural resources,”
focusing on environmental justice and digital innovation as key tools to strengthen institutional integrity.
UNDP explained that the new phase builds directly on ACAI’s first cycle (2021–2025), which contributed to Iraq’s 14-place leap in the 2024 Transparency Index, described as the country’s strongest improvement in more than a decade. In its earlier phase, ACAI supported training for judges, investigators and legal professionals, monitored corruption trials, assisted journalists and civil society actors in advocacy and investigative reporting, and helped modernise arbitration and mediation frameworks deemed critical for investment and economic stability.
The second phase returns with an explicit focus on corruption risks in environmental and resource sectors: from water and land management to pollution control, licensing regimes and climate-related investments. UNDP underscored that this reorientation reflects a recognition that corruption in environmental governance directly affects
“people’s lives, the quality of their air, the safety of their drinking water, and the future of their farmland.”
EU funding and political backing at the centre of ACAI II
UNDP’s communications on the launch of ACAI II state that the new phase is backed by 4.5 million euros in funding from the European Union, earmarked to take Iraq’s anti-corruption efforts
“into one of its most vulnerable and consequential arenas, the environment.”
As reported by UNDP, Klemens Semtner, the European Union Ambassador to Iraq, described ACAI II as
“strategically aligned to Iraq’s national reform priorities, and Iraq’s international obligations under the Paris Agreement.”
In remarks quoted by UNDP, Ambassador Semtner further asserted that the project is
“fully synchronized with the European Union’s ‘Greening Iraq’ agenda,”
and stressed that it is “not just an anti-corruption project, it is a governance, climate and justice project.” These comments position the EU not only as a financial supporter but as a political and strategic partner in linking anti-corruption to climate governance and environmental policy in Iraq.
Separately, a draft joint declaration of the Eighth Inter‑Parliamentary Meeting between the European Parliament and the Iraqi Council of Representatives has also underscored the EU’s readiness to continue technical assistance to Iraq in areas such as anti-corruption initiatives and public administration reform, signalling broader institutional backing within the EU framework for efforts like ACAI II. This parliamentary-level endorsement complements the EU Delegation’s operational role on the ground in Baghdad.
Iraqi government frames environment and integrity as inseparable
As reported by UNDP’s regional Arab States office, the launch event for ACAI II brought together senior representatives from Iraq’s Federal Commission of Integrity, the EU Delegation, the Supreme Judicial Council, the Ministry of Environment, the National Investment Commission and legal and environmental experts. During the ceremony, First Deputy Chairman of the Federal Integrity Commission, Dr Mazhar al‑Jubouri, delivered a stark message on the intersection of environment and corruption.
According to UNDP’s account, Dr al‑Jubouri stated that
“combating corruption, desertification, and environmental pollution have become critical issues that can no longer be treated as marginal matters,”
linking these challenges to
“the future and lives of generations and countries, and to the paths of development, reconstruction, and investment.”
He added that the second phase of the project would see
“significant expansion, including the incorporation of environmental justice, the development of a national environmental integrity system, and the strengthening of oversight and judicial capacities in cases related to natural resources and pollution.”
UNDP stressed that ACAI II is designed to empower communities that are disproportionately affected by both corruption and climate crises, by ensuring their voices are heard, their concerns considered, and that mechanisms for active citizen participation are enabled. In its description, UNDP argued that these efforts place Iraq among the first countries in the region to explicitly link anti-corruption enforcement with climate governance.
US envoy highlights domestic reforms and international support
As reported by the Erbil‑based outlet BasNews in an article titled
“US Envoy Says Iraq Corruption Crackdown is Key to Accountability,”
the United States Special Envoy to Iraq welcomed recent Iraqi anti-corruption actions as central to improving accountability. Citing that coverage, BasNews noted that Iraqi authorities have “moved on domestic anti-corruption reforms,” pointing specifically to the government’s work with UNDP and EU support in launching the second phase of the anti-corruption and arbitration initiative aimed at strengthening institutional integrity, boosting transparency, and tackling corruption linked to natural resources and environmental governance.
While BasNews concentrated on the broader political context, including US messaging on governance and accountability, the reference to the ACAI II launch illustrates how the initiative has become a flagship example of Baghdad’s domestic reform moves supported by multilateral and European partners. The BasNews report situates the project within a larger push by Iraqi authorities to signal progress against entrenched corruption networks that have historically undermined public trust and economic development.
Institutional integrity, arbitration reform and EU priorities
UNDP’s detailed description of ACAI’s first phase emphasised its contribution to judicial and institutional reform, including training programmes for judges and investigators, monitoring of corruption trials and the modernisation of arbitration and mediation frameworks. These legal and procedural reforms are presented as essential to improving the investment climate and economic stability in Iraq, by providing more predictable and transparent mechanisms for dispute resolution.
The EU’s involvement dovetails with its broader rule-of-law and governance agenda in partner countries, particularly in post-conflict and transition contexts. As reflected in the Inter‑Parliamentary Meeting draft joint declaration, EU institutions have encouraged continued cooperation with Iraq on anti-corruption efforts and public administration reform, signalling that projects like ACAI II are seen as part of a wider package of support for Iraqi state-building and governance consolidation.
From the EU’s perspective, the “Greening Iraq” agenda mentioned by Ambassador Semtner situates anti-corruption actions within a broader policy framework that includes climate resilience, environmental protection and sustainable development. By funding a project that targets corruption in sectors such as water management, pollution control and climate-related investment, the EU appears to be seeking both to safeguard its own development investments and to promote standards of environmental governance aligned with European and international norms.
Transparency gains and future challenges
UNDP has linked ACAI’s work to Iraq’s 14-place rise in the 2024 Transparency Index, describing this as “one of Iraq’s major recent governance wins” and its strongest jump in over a decade. Although attribution for such index movements is necessarily shared among various reforms and political developments, UNDP argues that the combined effect of training, monitoring, civil society engagement and legal modernisation under ACAI I helped lay the groundwork for these improvements.
At the same time, UNDP’s statements acknowledge that sustainable change will depend on long-term political commitment and the effective implementation of the new tools and frameworks introduced under ACAI II. The initiative is described as
“the next evolution of Iraq’s integrity efforts,”
designed to connect transparency reforms to people’s daily lives and to link anti-corruption measures with climate and environmental justice.
By integrating judicial capacity-building, community empowerment, environmental policy and digital innovation, ACAI II positions Iraq as a test case for a more holistic model of anti-corruption programming in the Middle East, supported by EU funding and UNDP expertise. As highlighted in BasNews coverage and in statements by the EU Ambassador and Iraqi integrity officials, the project is now at the centre of how Baghdad, Brussels and international partners frame progress on accountability, environmental stewardship and governance reform in the country.
