Rebuilding Syria: Through Legislative and Economic Reform

Most countries around the world have come to recognize that excessive centralization is ineffective. It expands bureaucracy, delays economic activity, and in many cases stifles it altogether. Syria’s own experience has demonstrated the shortcomings of centralized governance as nearly every governorate has suffered from administrative bottlenecks that have hindered urban development and economic growth. As a major step in the restructuring process Syria should therefore move toward broad administrative and fiscal decentralization. 

The cornerstone of this transition would be amending Local Administration Law No. 107 to grant governors authority equivalent to that of ministers in most executive decisions. Amending the current law would effectively solve the problem of bottlenecks by granting governors the authority to approve governorate budgets locally, permitting governorates to conclude investment agreements within defined financial limits and establish their own local investment authorities. Additional amendments should be made to empower governors to issue industrial, tourism, and agricultural licenses, allow for the local collection of a portion of tax revenues and strengthen local oversight and accountability.

From a legal perspective, these amendments would likely affect Articles 1 through 55 to clarify the concept of decentralization, redefine the transfer of powers and financing, classify administrative units, strengthen the independence of local councils, and redefine the role and responsibilities of governors under Articles 39–55. Article 131 should also be amended to eliminate overlapping chains of authority, while Articles 134–154 should be revised to rebuild the framework for local public finance, borrowing, and fiscal transfers.

The most appropriate transitional model for Syria through 2030 would require the transfer of powers by force of law rather than by subsequent executive decisions. The central government’s exclusive powers should be explicitly defined, while all other authorities assigned by law should automatically belong to local governments. Ministries should not be permitted to reclaim these powers except through legislation or under clearly defined, temporary emergency circumstances.

One of the most important reforms concerns the legal status of the governor. Under the current framework, the governor represents the central government and serves as the representative of all ministries within the governorate. Appointed and dismissed by presidential decree, the governor functions more as a delegate of the central government than as an executive leader of local development. By 2030, once Syria’s administrative and electoral systems have stabilized, governors could either be directly elected by citizens or elected by the governorate council.

“Syria’s transition requires transferring power by law, not by temporary decisions, so that local governments become empowered partners in development.”

Dr. Osama Kadi 

During the transitional period until 2030, governors should simultaneously serve two roles: representatives of the state responsible for upholding legality and national authority, and chief local executives responsible for development, budgeting, and public services. This would require placing provincial branches of ministries under the governor’s authority, eliminating the need for prior ministerial approval for the formation of executive offices, and requiring every governor to present a four-year development program within the first 100 days of taking office. Such programs should include measurable performance indicators, including waste collection rates, public cleanliness, road maintenance, private-sector investment, job creation, digitalization of public services, revenue collection, and budget implementation.

The powers of elected local councils should also be significantly strengthened. Councils should have authority to approve governorate development plans and budgets, oversee implementation, question governors and local officials, withdraw confidence from executive offices or individual members, and local councils should only be dissolved by judicial order.

The existing system of local finance, borrowing, and revenue collection remains largely dependent upon decisions by the Ministers of Local Administration and Finance. Stable local revenue sources should therefore be established, including a designated share of income tax generated within each governorate, a share of sales tax revenues, property taxes, and other local fees and revenues. The guiding principle should be that “resources follow responsibilities.” Whenever authority over education, healthcare, local transportation, or other services is transferred, the accompanying financial allocations, employees, public assets, facilities, information systems, and legal responsibilities must also be transferred.

“Decentralization cannot succeed without financial independence; resources must follow responsibilities, ensuring that local governments have the means to deliver the services they are entrusted with.”

Dr. Osama Kadi 

A national equalization mechanism should also be established to reduce disparities among governorates. A National Municipal and Governorate Fund should distribute revenues, much of which are generated in Damascus and Aleppo, according to objective criteria such as population, poverty levels, geographic size, infrastructure deficits, numbers of internally displaced persons, wartime destruction, reconstruction needs, and each governorate’s own revenue-generating capacity.

Each governorate should establish its own investment authority with the power to conclude investment contracts, issue industrial, tourism, and agricultural licenses, grant environmental approvals, and allocate land within industrial zones.

To accelerate development, Syria should adopt the principle of “administrative silence equals approval.” The law should establish mandatory deadlines—for example, 15 days for simple permits, 30 days for medium-sized projects, and 60 days for major investments. Equally important, authority over urban planning should be transferred to governorate councils, allowing them to modify building regulations within a national framework that prioritizes public safety, environmental standards, and cultural heritage.

Any revision of Law No. 107 should also require every administrative unit to operate through a unified digital local-government portal. All public contracts exceeding a specified financial threshold should be published electronically, including tender specifications, names of bidders, the winning proposal, contract values, and all relevant supporting information. The Ministry of Local Administration should exercise only legality review, not expediency review; in other words, it should ensure that local decisions comply with the law without substituting its own judgment regarding what is most appropriate for each governorate. Major metropolitan areas could also be granted expanded powers, while new provisions should address emergency governance, post-conflict reconstruction, and inter-governorate cooperation.

All of these reforms must be implemented within a framework of good governance. This includes establishing an independent local financial oversight authority, enacting a strict conflict-of-interest law requiring public officials to disclose financial assets and commercial interests. Reforms should also require officials to abstain from voting when conflicts exist, prohibit contracts with companies owned by themselves or close relatives, ensure that local public employment is based on professional qualifications rather than political patronage, and prohibit political appointments to technical positions.

In short, Syria should grant all governorates broad administrative authority and stable financial resources while simultaneously strengthening oversight and accountability. The objective is not merely to give governors greater powers, but to empower governors to work together with strong elected councils in building financial independence, transparency, and an efficient administrative judiciary.

Among the highest legislative priorities is reforming the Investment Law.  Specifically, Law No. 114 of 2025 should be fully implemented and, if necessary, expanded or completely rewritten. The law should guarantee equal treatment for Syrian and foreign investors, recognize international arbitration, and institutionalize the one-stop investment window. Company law should also be modernized to allow businesses to be established within a single day, recognize single-shareholder companies, encourage startups, promote joint-stock companies, and provide incentives for family-owned businesses to transition into publicly listed corporations on the Damascus Securities Exchange. Such reforms would broaden ownership to include founding investors, pension funds, individual shareholders, and institutional investors. 

“A modern investment law must do more than attract capital; it must build confidence, guarantee fairness, and create opportunities for sustainable economic growth.”

Dr. Osama Kadi 

Historical experience demonstrates that this transformation takes time. Ford Motor Company required 37 years to evolve from a wholly family-owned company in 1919 to a publicly traded corporation in 1956. Dodge required 25 years between 1900 and 1925. Honda completed the transition within nine years, between 1948 and 1957, while Toyota required 23 years, from 1926 to 1949. If the Syrian government demonstrates genuine respect for the rule of law, ensures judicial independence, rebuilds trust among citizens, and adopts meaningful incentives for family businesses, many of Syria’s largest family-owned companies could successfully transition into publicly traded corporations by 2035.

Commercial law should likewise be modernized to reflect today’s digital economy. Reforms should provide a comprehensive legal framework for e-commerce, digital transactions, and electronic signatures. Tax legislation should also be revised by adopting the Ministry of Finance’s recent reform proposals, implementing digital tax administration, introducing simplified taxation, and ensuring long-term legislative stability for investment contracts.

Customs legislation should also be modernized by completing reforms governing border crossings and customs authorities, implementing a genuine one-stop customs system, adopting electronic customs clearance, utilizing risk-based customs management, modernizing the legal framework governing customs brokerage through digital platforms, and replacing the current Government Contracts Law with a modern public procurement law that reflects international best practices.