![An aerial view of the buildings, showing the traces of the 13-year civil war, after the fall of the regime of Bashar al-Assad, in Hajar al-Aswad area of Damascus, Syria on January 18, 2025. [Erçin Ertürk - Anadolu Agency]](https://i0.wp.com/www.middleeastmonitor.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/AA-20250122-36823313-36823286-REBUILDING_LIVES_IN_THE_HAJAR_ALASWAD_AREA_OF_DAMASCUS-1-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1)
A United Nations report has estimated that Syria lost $800 billion in gross domestic product (GDP) over 14 years of conflict.
The report highlighted the urgent need for rapid economic growth in the coming decade to ensure recovery.
Published by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the report, titled ‘The Impact of the Conflict in Syria: A Devastated Economy, Pervasive Poverty and a Challenging Road Ahead to Social and Economic Recovery’, examined the social and economic consequences of the conflict.
According to the report, the 14-year-long conflict has set Syria’s economic and social progress back nearly 40 years.
During the war, Syria’s GDP shrank by 50 per cent, while the poverty rate rose from 33 per cent before the conflict to 90 per cent today. Extreme poverty has reached 66 per cent.
The report noted that 75 per cent of the population now requires humanitarian aid, including healthcare, education, employment, food security, water, energy and shelter.
It also stated that the country’s energy production has dropped by 80 per cent, with 70 per cent of power plants damaged. This has resulted in a 75 per cent reduction in the capacity of the national electricity grid.
The report estimated that at the current growth rate of 1.3 per cent, Syria’s economy would take 55 years to return to its pre-war levels.
READ: 90% of Syria’s population living in poverty after years of civil war: UN official