Real Estate & Construction

In January, several ministries held meetings with several foreign players - from the World Bank, the Saudi Development Fund, Qatar National Bank, the European Union, Pakistan - where cooperation to support reconstruction efforts were discussed, however little concrete steps or investments came out of these flurry of meetings. 

Qatar announced last week the launch of an initiative to promote the “safe and voluntary return” of Syrian refugees from Lebanon. The project is expected to allow between 100,000 and 400,000 Syrian refugees to resettle in their country of origin through several batches.  

The Syrian Investment Agency (SIA) issued several decisions in November (See Official Gazette issue no. 44) regarding industrial projects in Syria.

The Syrian Investment Agency has issued three decisions in October extending three licences awarded to private sector companies for the establishment of black cement production factories. 

A new assessment published by the World Bank (WB) on October 21 has quantified the material devastation caused by more than a decade of conflict in Syria, estimating the total value of direct physical damage at USD 108.2 billion and the cost of reconstruction at USD 215.6 billion. The most severely affected governorates are Aleppo, Rural Damascus, and Homs, which together account for over 59 percent of total damage.

Earlier this month, Iraqi company Vertex Investment Group signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Economy and Industry to rehabilitate the Hama Cement Plant and increase its production capacity.

A delegation of French businessmen and women arrived in Syria on October 2, meeting with President Ahmad Al-Sharaa and several ministers, including those in charge of Transportation, Telecommunication and Finance. The visit was organised by the Mouvement des entreprises de France (MEDEF), a federation of business owners. This first “French-Syrian Economic Forum” included representatives of 44 large companies.

In recent weeks, several fundraising campaigns for Syria’s reconstruction have emerged, from citizen-led initiatives in the Deir-ez-Zor, Daraa, and Homs governorates, to the official launch at the state-level of the Syrian Development Fund. 

Syria has announced several memoranda of understanding (MoUs) worth around USD 14 billion with Arab and international companies, covering a series of large-scale infrastructure projects, including the long-delayed Damascus Metro and a new futuristic airport.

The Central Bank of Syria (CBS) has recently announced several measures to boost supply in the housing market.

A French construction company is discussing with the Syrian government ways to implement a memorandum of understanding signed during the regime era to repair some three dozen bridges across the country.

Seven hundred and forty companies from local, Arab, and international markets gathered at the 22nd edition of the International Exhibition for Construction (Buildex), which drew over 50,000 visitors and took place at the Damascus International Fairgrounds between May 27 and 31. 

The Syrian cement industry has been struggling to recover years after the conflict receded in most of Syria’s largest cities, but preliminary numbers indicate that the situation may be slightly improving this year.

A new cement factory linked to war profiteer Samer Foz was established in December with a capital of USD 416 million, becoming one of the largest private companies in the country. The Minister of Domestic Trade and Consumer Protection approved on December 13 the establishment of Modern Cement Public Joint Stock Company (PJSC), a cement manufacturer located in Rural Damascus.

Over 12 years of conflict, the Syrian government has spent SYP 380 billion on 11,909 reconstruction projects, Finance Minister Kenan Yaghi revealed on November 12 in a Syrian parliament session discussing the 2024 budget.

Initial figures appear to indicate that Syria’s cement market, a proxy for construction activity, will contract again this year, despite the earthquake-related reconstruction needs and the investment that was expected after the Arab rapprochement with Damascus.

The ongoing Turkish retaliatory attacks in northeast Syria have severely affected oil, water, electricity, education, and health infrastructure.

Earlier this year, a company linked to the Katerji family began construction work on commercial and residential complexes in Marota City. Marota City is an upscale real estate development that is being built on expropriated land and informal settlements in areas that were largely opposed to the government during the Syrian uprising. This luxurious development project launched more than ten years ago has largely failed to attract investment so far, although several regime cronies showed initial interest in it.

A Canada-based charity recently announced plans to build an entire village with hundreds of homes and other facilities for displaced Syrians in northern Syria, one of several large-scale residential projects in the region. 

The government recently contracted a Russian company linked to Russian oligarch Dmitry Pumpyansky to build and operate a new 4-star tourist resort in Lattakia.