Syria Between the Suffering of Poverty and the Hope of New Strategies
September 3, 2025184 ViewsRead Time: 2 minutes
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After poverty rates reached shocking levels ranging between 70 and 90 percent, Syria announces a national strategy to combat this phenomenon that has exhausted society during the long years of war. Finance Minister Mohammad Yasser Barnieh describes the new vision with ambitious slogans: "No beggar in the street, no orphan without care, and no poor family without support." But the road from slogans to reality is thorny and complex.
The announcement of this strategy comes at a time when the country faces enormous challenges, as poverty has become a dominant feature of daily life for most Syrians. The program prepared by the Ministry of Finance in cooperation with government agencies and international organizations seeks a radical solution to the causes of poverty, not just temporary relief from its effects.
Funding poses the biggest challenge to this ambitious plan. The ministry proposes an innovative solution that involves exempting some businessmen from accumulated taxes in exchange for their community contributions in their areas. It is also looking to revive the traditional systems of zakat and waqf to invest their resources in combating poverty, in an attempt to combine authenticity and modernity in the mechanisms of confrontation.
The plan begins with a precise identification phase of the poor categories, followed by practical programs aimed at transforming beneficiaries from a state of need to productivity. Support will include small projects, vocational training, and improving health insurance and salaries.
But the lingering question remains: Can a single strategy, no matter how comprehensive, address a phenomenon of this size and complexity? Poverty in Syria today is not just a lack of income, but a cumulative result of years of destruction, economic collapse, and international isolation.
Success will require true national cohesion, transparency in implementation, sustainable international support, and strong political will to turn slogans into tangible reality. Syrians who have lived through years of war and destruction deserve more than promises; they deserve a glimpse of real hope that restores their human dignity.
The announcement of this strategy comes at a time when the country faces enormous challenges, as poverty has become a dominant feature of daily life for most Syrians. The program prepared by the Ministry of Finance in cooperation with government agencies and international organizations seeks a radical solution to the causes of poverty, not just temporary relief from its effects.
Funding poses the biggest challenge to this ambitious plan. The ministry proposes an innovative solution that involves exempting some businessmen from accumulated taxes in exchange for their community contributions in their areas. It is also looking to revive the traditional systems of zakat and waqf to invest their resources in combating poverty, in an attempt to combine authenticity and modernity in the mechanisms of confrontation.
The plan begins with a precise identification phase of the poor categories, followed by practical programs aimed at transforming beneficiaries from a state of need to productivity. Support will include small projects, vocational training, and improving health insurance and salaries.
But the lingering question remains: Can a single strategy, no matter how comprehensive, address a phenomenon of this size and complexity? Poverty in Syria today is not just a lack of income, but a cumulative result of years of destruction, economic collapse, and international isolation.
Success will require true national cohesion, transparency in implementation, sustainable international support, and strong political will to turn slogans into tangible reality. Syrians who have lived through years of war and destruction deserve more than promises; they deserve a glimpse of real hope that restores their human dignity.
