Mediterranean Action Plan

III. NATIONAL STUDY
Introduction
SYRIA - National study
The Syrian Arab Republic lies on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea, bounded by
Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Palestine & Jordan from the south and by Lebanon &
The Mediterranean Sea to the west.
The total area of SAR is 18517971 hectares of which 6 million hectares are cultivated land &
the remained is desert and Rocky Mountains. The Syrian Desert is suitable for grass growing
& is used as pastures during sufficient rainfall.
The climate of the Mediterranean Sea generally prevails in Syria, this climate may be
characterized by rainy winter & a dry hot summer separated by two short transitional
seasons. The coastal region is characterized by heavy rainfall in winter & moderate
temperature & high relative humidity in summer .The interior is characterized by a rainy
winter season and a hot dry season during summer, the area in the mountains with an
altitude of 1000 meters or more characterized by rainy winter where rainfall may exceed
1000 mm & moderate climate in summer.
1. The country's energy situation: indicators & basic data
1.1 Share of t he Energy S ecto r and Insti tu ti onal Specificities
The sectors economic weight:
Energy share in the GDP (%)
The Syrian population was about 18.269 Million at mid 2005, of which 9.197 Million was
considered as "urban." According to the population census, the average annual growth rate
was 2.45 during nineteenth of 20 th century. The GDP share illustrated in the following table:
Table 1 Basic data on the economic structure of Syria
Years 2000 2001 2002 2003
GDP (Billion SP) 903.9 950.24
5
1006.431
1105.582
1155.386
Population (thousand) 16320 16720 17130 17550 17921 18269
GDP per capita (SP per year) 61692
GDP distributed as follows:
Agriculture (%) 25 25 23 24
Mining & Manufacturing 30 27
Building & construction (%) 3 3 3 3
Wholesale & retail trade (%) 15 7 18
Transport & communication (%) 13 13 13 11 3
Finance & insurance (%) 4 3 3 4
Social & Personal services (%) 2 2 3 3 2
Government services (%) 8 8 10 9
Private non- Profit services 0 0 0 0 0 0
Customs duties 0 0 0 0 2 2
Value of imputed monetary 0 0 0 0 -1 -1
Total (%) 100 100 100 100 100 100
517