FAO

The Syrian delegation at the COP28 in Dubai has blamed international sanctions, opposition groups, the U.S., Turkey, and Israel for aggravating the climate crisis in Syria, while deflecting any governmental responsibility in Syria’s climate emergency. At the annual Conference of Parties, private entities and governments tend to make pledges to help developing countries face the climate crisis, but so far,  Damascus' search for international climate finance seems to have fallen flat this year.  

The Green Climate Fund (GCF), the world’s largest multilateral climate fund, has granted USD 1.9 million to the Syrian government in the past four years but could potentially attract much more. Countries must enhance the technical capacity of national institutions through a ‘Readiness Program' to access GCF funds. As of August, GCF has funded 709 ‘readiness requests’ worth a total of USD 527.6 million across 142 countries. In the case of Syria, the GCF has so far disbursed USD 873,300 out of the total USD 1.9 million granted.

In an escalation of hostilities unseen in northwest Syria since 2019, the Syrian regime and Russian forces targeted 2,300 locations in Idlib and the Aleppo governorate in October.

The Syrian government and the AANES expect the wheat harvest this year to be higher than in 2022, as local authorities compete to purchase the crop from farmers.

Over 100 days after the February 06 earthquake, the agricultural sector in Northwest Syria – where the vast majority of people depend on agriculture for their livelihoods – remains severely damaged, according to a new report by the Food and Agriculture Organisation. The sector has already suffered from conflict-related damages to infrastructure, irrigation, and inputs. 

The United Nations Industrial Organisation has launched a new project for the first time since 2011.