ALBAWABA — Syria's gross domestic product is expected to contract at a higher rate of 5.5 percent, taking into account the impact of last month's deadly earthquakes, the World Bank said on Saturday.
On top of an earlier projected contraction of 3.2 percent in 2023, Syria’s real GDP contraction is projected to widen by 2.3 percent this year due to the February 6 and February 20 earthquakes that hit the northern and western parts of the country and its aftershocks that killed more than 50,000 people in Turkey and Syria while also displacing millions.
"The recent earthquake exacerbates the already dire consequences of the 12 year-long conflict for the people of Syria," Jean-Christophe Carret, World Bank country director for the Middle East Department said in a statement.
"The World Bank hopes that this rapid damage and needs assessment will help inform key players on the needs associated with this devastating disaster and contribute to encourage international response efforts," Carret added.
Economic growth may contract further if reconstruction progress is slower than expected, given limited public resources, weak private investment, and limited humanitarian assistance reaching the affected areas, the World Bank said in its statement.
The Syria Earthquake 2023 Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment forecasts additional cost the Syrian economy of $5.2 billion, including physical damages of $3.7 billion and losses of $1.5 billion, the Bank announced in its statement.
Recovery and reconstruction costs will approach $8 billion over three years, the bank predicted, foreseeing severe strain for Syria’s economy which has been hard-hit from being under more than 13 years of a deadly civil war.
The worst-hit sectors in Syria include housing, followed by transport, environment and agriculture, according to the bank's Syria Earthquake 2023 RDNA.
