Years of strife ruined the energy sector, battered the currency and strangled growth. The West must ease financial controls to help the economy, experts say.The energy sector in Syria has been severely damaged by years of conflict, causing the currency to weaken and hindering economic growth. Experts are calling for the West to ease financial controls in order to help the struggling economy. While the fall of President Bashar al-Assad’s government was swift, the process of rebuilding the devastated economy will be slow and difficult. The civil war and political repression have left the country’s infrastructure, including oil and gas wells, roads, and electricity grids, in ruins. As a result, 90% of the population is living in poverty and the value of the Syrian pound has drastically decreased. Before the war, oil and agriculture were major contributors to the economy, but now the most profitable export is an illegal drug controlled by a group of politically connected elites. Syrian economist and president of the Circle of Arab Economists, Samir Aita, states that the entire economic system in Syria is not functioning. The leader of the rebel coalition, Ahmed al-Shara, faces the daunting task of unifying rebel factions, rebuilding the government, restoring the rule of law, and providing essential services such as water distribution. However, it is widely agreed that the most crucial step in rebuilding the economy can only be taken by the United States: lifting the harsh sanctions that have cut off Syria from international trade and investment. According to The New York Times, experts believe that this is necessary for the country to have any chance of recovery.
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