(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Many people in Iraq have low expectations about their economic well-being in the future, according to a poll by Opinion Research Business. 41 per cent of respondents think their household’s financial position will not change over the next 12 months, while 17 per cent think it will worsen at least slightly.

The United States-led coalition effort against Saddam Hussein’s regime was launched in March 2003. At least 3,760 American soldiers have died during the military operation, and more than 27,700 troops have been wounded in action.

There has been no official inquiry into the actual number of Iraqi casualties. A volunteer group of British and U.S. academics and researchers—known as Iraq Body Count (IBC)—estimates that more than 71,300 Iraqi civilians have been killed during the military intervention.

In December 2005, Iraqi voters renewed their National Assembly. In May 2006, Shiite United Iraqi Alliance member Nouri al-Maliki officially took over as prime minister. Hussein was executed in December 2006 after being sentenced to death for his role in the 1982 Dujail massacre, in which 148 Iraqis were killed after a failed assassination attempt against the then-Iraqi president.

On Sept. 6, Charles Ries—the U.S. coordinator for economic transition in Iraq—said the country’s economy is likely to grow more than 6 per cent by the end of this year despite many obstacles and the under-performance of the oil sector. Ries stated that legislation on oil revenues due to be discussed in the Iraqi legislature this month is expected to result in increased crude production, adding, "We think that the future economy of the country is quite bright as oil production increases and as the private sector responds to new opportunities."

Polling Data

How do you expect the financial position of your household to change over the next 12 months?

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