Syria: rebuilding a country
A year after the fall of the Assad regime, people in Syria are looking ahead. GIZ is supporting them in shaping a new future.
Syria is in a state of major change. The civil war has ended, and the country is repositioning itself. This presents many challenges, but also offers an opportunity for positive development for the population. Together with its clients and commissioning parties, GIZ is supporting Syrian society with reconstruction. The objective is to improve living conditions for the Syrian population and create lasting prospects. GIZ is working on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the Federal Foreign Office, with co-financing from the European Union and other donors.
Tailored support based on years of experience
GIZ has been operating in Syria since 1976. It has thus established valuable contacts in civil society and garnered experience that is now crucial for reconstruction. From 2013 onwards, it worked without government involvement with the assistance of local non-governmental organisations. Despite the difficult conditions, GIZ has consistently contributed to improving people’s living conditions.
More than 1.2 million people have benefited from this work so far. Examples include repairing damaged hospitals and health care facilities and keeping them operational. This has enabled more than 210,000 operations to be performed since 2017. GIZ is also providing continuing education for psychologists so that they can support people in dealing with the traumatic impacts of war and displacement.
Since 2020, on behalf of BMZ and the European Union, GIZ has also facilitated access to clean water for around 885,000 people. A further 155,000 people now have access to sanitation facilities. GIZ has provided training for more than 12,700 farmers, so that they can achieve better harvests and process their products more efficiently.
Shaping reconstruction with the Syrian population
How support for Syria continues depends on how the political environment develops. However, one thing is already clear: GIZ will expand its work in Syria and focus on building state capacity. This includes a citizen-centred local administration, economic development, access to the judicial system and an independent judiciary. Reconstruction is already well under way: in February 2025, GIZ launched new hospital partnerships between Germany and Syria. There are currently 14 hospital partnerships in place, including in Damascus and Idlib.