Working for Recovery Reconstruction & Development in Syria

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The State of the Syrian Economy at the end of 2016

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January 2017

The conflict in Syria has almost completed its sixth year. The war, together with the economic sanctions, devastated the Syrian economy. They affected almost all types of infrastructure (electricity, water systems, transport and communication), direct productive activities (oil, industry and agriculture), and housing, health and education facilities. Housing and industry have borne the brunt of destruction. The World Bank Damage and Needs Assessment report estimated the total damages based on Satellite imagery and social media analytics for six cities, namely, Aleppo, Dara’a, Hama, Homs, Idleb, and Lattakia at between $6 to 7.3 billion. Satellite images, captured on March 2016, showed Aleppo as the most damaged city in Syria out of the six assessed, with Homs the second most badly damaged, and Hama, the third. ESCWA estimated accumulating physical loss at $89.9 billion at the end of 2015 and at $100 billion at the end of 2016. It also estimated that a minimum public investment of $183.5 billion will be needed to rebuild the country and to bring Syrian GDP back to pre- conflict levels (ESCWA, Survey of Economic and Social Developments in the Arab Region, 2016).