Syria’s economic pain is far from over despite Assad’s ouster

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DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Samir Al-Baghdad grabbed his pick and walked up a wobbly set of stairs made of barriers and rubble.

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He is rebuilding his destroyed family home in the Qaboun neighborhood near Damascus, the capital of Syria.

The traditional building, which housed his family, parents and some relatives, had a courtyard decorated with plants and tiled floors where guests were received. But the house, like dozens of others nearby, had been reduced to piles of rubble during years of civil war.

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Al-Baghdadi cannot hire workers or rent a bulldozer to clear the debris and repair the house. He earns enough money as a mechanic to feed his family. But he is desperate to rebuild it because he is struggling to pay the high rent for an apartment.

“Economic opportunities are basically non-existent,” said Al-Baghdadi, sitting on a pile of rubble and debris where the entrance to the house used to be. “So we will slowly rebuild our hands.”

Although Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was ousted last month in a stunning rebellion, the country’s dire economic conditions that protesters criticized have not changed.

The economy has been battered by corruption and 13 years of civil war. Combined with international sanctions and mismanagement, inflation soared, pulling about 90% of the country into poverty. More than half the population — about 12 million people — don’t know where their next meal will come from, according to the United Nations World Food Programme.

With no sign of a widespread withdrawal of international sanctions and continued caution among potential investors abroad, the honeymoon period for the country’s new rulers could be short-lived.

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Qaboun, a stone’s throw from the city centre, and other eastern Damascus neighborhoods became rebel strongholds in 2012, when the country’s mass protests against Assad escalated into all-out war.

It has suffered government air strikes, artillery fire, and at one point extremists from the Islamic State group. In 2017, government forces retook the neighborhood, but when al-Baghdadi tried to return in 2020, security forces expelled him and forced him to sign a pledge to never return, saying it was a security zone that was off limits.

After the fall of Assad, Al-Baghdadi was finally able to return. Like many, he has been building and hoping to pave the way to better times despite the many challenges that lie ahead, including deadly power cuts and fuel shortages.

For years, Syrian families have relied on humanitarian aid and remittances from family members living abroad to survive. On top of the huge costs of rebuilding the country’s devastated electricity, money is needed to restore its devastated agricultural and manufacturing sectors to make its declining economy productive again.

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The United Nations estimated in 2017 that it would cost at least $250 billion to rebuild Syria. Some experts now say the number could reach at least $400 billion.

Rich Gulf states have pledged to build economic partnerships with Syria’s new interim rulers, while Washington has eased some restrictions without completely lifting its sanctions. The US Treasury Department issued a six-month license allowing certain transactions with the interim government of Syria. While it includes some energy sales, Syrians say it is not enough.

Sinan Hatahit, an economic researcher at the Washington-based Atlantic Council think tank, said the US measures were the “minimum” needed to show good faith to Damascus and not enough to help Syria with its economy.

“It doesn’t help the private sector get involved,” Hattahit said. “Restrictions on trade, restrictions on reconstruction, and rebuilding infrastructure still exist.”

While countries are reluctant to make more impactful decisions as they hope for a peaceful political transition, many Syrians say the economy cannot wait.

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“Without jobs, without huge inflows of money and investments… these families have no means to ends,” Hattahit said.

The Executive Director of the World Food Program echoed similar sentiments, warning Syria’s neighbors that the food and economic crisis is also a crisis of security.

“Hunger does not breed good will,” Cindy McCain said in an interview during her first visit to Damascus.

In the bustling old market in the Syrian capital, crowds crowd narrow aisles as the country’s new flag is unfurled on crowded stalls. Merchants say the atmosphere is nice and festive, but no one is buying anything.

People stop to smell the aromatic and colorful spices or pose for photos next to the masked fighters of the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham ruling group guarding the entrances to the market.

“We are very happy to be liberated, thank God, but there are few jobs,” said Weld Naira, who works with his father in a clothing store. “Yes, we were relieved of the bullying and oppression, but all these people here came to celebrate but not to buy anything because things are expensive.”

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Nearby, Abu Samir, a carpenter, saws a piece of wood as he assembles a chest of drawers. There is no electricity to power his machine, so he does it by hand.

“I work at a loss… and you can’t do bigger workshops because there’s no electricity,” he said.

His sons live abroad and send money to help him get by, but he refuses to stop the carpentry work that has been his livelihood for 50 years.

In Qaboun, Al-Baghdadi pours tea on a makeshift balcony overlooking his neighborhood, which has turned into empty plots and a gathering point for local buses and minivans. It was a successful day because he managed to connect an electrical cable to turn on a single light bulb – but part of his roof collapsed.

He hasn’t been able to secure running water, but he hopes he and his family will be able to move into the house with his many memories before the summer, even if it’s far from finished due to his financial situation.

“I would rather live in a palace somewhere else,” Al-Baghdadi said.

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