Iraq gets first funding to rebuild war-struck regions
Iraq and the World Bank signed a $350 million loan agreement on Sunday to fund emergency reconstruction in towns recaptured from Islamic State militants, a deal Baghdad said marked the first international help to rebuild areas devastated by war.
Finance Minister Hoshiyar Zebari said around a third of the money would go towards repairing roads and bridges, with a similar amount allocated to restoring electricity networks, water and sewage.
Iraq faces a budget deficit of up to $20 billion this year as it grapples with low oil revenues and the heavy cost of war with Islamic State insurgents.
