After more than a decade of conflict, Syria is entering a pivotal moment following the 2024 transition. The country faces immense challenges, but also significant potential to rebuild livelihoods and restore economic stability. Central to this recovery are Syrian workers, entrepreneurs, and businesses that have endured years of instability, demonstrating resilience that can serve as the foundation for a broader economic rebound. Across Syria, households and small businesses have adapted with remarkable creativity, keeping enterprises alive on minimal capital and maintaining informal income-generating activities despite limited resources.
Job creation is the most urgent priority for Syria’s economic recovery. Years of displacement, asset loss, and labor market disruption have left millions without stable incomes, while a growing youth population is entering the workforce. To meet this demographic shift, Syria must generate hundreds of thousands of jobs annually. Labour-intensive sectors such as agriculture, agro-processing, construction, light manufacturing, and local services offer the fastest route to inclusive employment, providing immediate income while creating ripple effects across communities. Employment is not only an economic necessity but also a stabilizing force for families, local communities, and the broader economy.
Syria’s private sector, despite operating under extremely challenging conditions, remains one of the strongest assets for recovery. Micro and small enterprises, workshops, farms, service providers, and medium-scale manufacturers have preserved skills and kept markets functioning. However, growth is constrained by opaque regulations, uneven enforcement, and limited access to finance. Transparent licensing, equitable land access, and consistent regulatory practices are essential to unlock the sector’s potential and ensure reforms benefit those with real productive capacity.
Domestic investment is crucial in the near term, as foreign investors are likely to remain cautious due to ongoing uncertainty. Syrian entrepreneurs, including those in the diaspora, understand local markets and can mobilize capital quickly. Supporting these investors through streamlined administrative processes, improved access to working capital, microfinance, credit guarantees, and targeted incentives for job-creating sectors can generate meaningful employment, strengthen local economies, and restore confidence.
Rebuilding the labor market is another critical component of recovery. Years of disruption have weakened skills, leaving businesses struggling to find qualified workers and jobseekers lacking clear pathways to employment. Vocational training, apprenticeships, and demand-driven skills programs aligned with market needs are essential for bridging this gap. Strengthening connections between producers, service providers, and traders, particularly in rural and peri-urban areas, can reinforce domestic value chains, support safe returns, reduce vulnerability, and strengthen social cohesion.
UNDP plays a central role in supporting Syria’s inclusive and people-centered economic recovery. At the community level, UNDP promotes livelihoods, labor-intensive public works, vocational skills development, and small business recovery while helping restore essential services and local markets. Nationally, it facilitates dialogue between public institutions, private sector actors, and development partners to improve policies, strengthen economic governance, and promote Syrian-led investment. Globally, UNDP connects Syria to international expertise, tested approaches, and partnerships aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals.
Syria’s economic recovery will be gradual, but the path forward is clear. Prioritizing job creation, skills development, and locally rooted enterprise, alongside building trust in economic rules and institutions, is essential for sustainable progress. Early strategic choices can ensure that recovery delivers tangible benefits, expands opportunity, and provides a foundation for long-term stability and prosperity for Syrian families and communities.
