Saudi Fund for Development signs $403m deal for Syrian projects

Acting on directives from King Salman bin Abdulaziz and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and in the presence of the Crown Prince and Syrian President Ahmed Al-Shar, the Saudi Fund for Development has signed six agreements with Syria’s Ministry of Finance for concessional development loans totaling over $403 million. The funding will support projects in Syria’s energy, water, health, housing, infrastructure, and digital transformation sectors.

The agreements were signed by Sultan bin Abdulrahman Al-Marshad, CEO of the Saudi Fund for Development, and Syrian Minister of Finance Mohammad Yassar Bernia.

The projects include rehabilitating generation units at the Aleppo thermal power plant with $90 million, benefiting around 5 million people by restoring the plant’s capacity, ensuring stable electricity supply, supporting economic and industrial activity, and strengthening the national grid. Another $30 million will be used to upgrade the drinking water metering system by supplying and installing 300,000 smart water meters, serving about 1.5 million people across various provinces. Additionally, $105 million will fund the construction, rehabilitation, and equipping of 25 civil defense centers in several provinces, benefiting over 7 million people by supporting the stability of communities affected through restoring and enhancing emergency and disaster management capabilities in emergency response and debris management.

The agreements also cover the rehabilitation of up to 10,000 damaged housing units in multiple areas with $60 million to promote social stability, and $100 million for the rehabilitation, construction, and equipping of a number of hospitals and health centers in different regions, supporting the recovery of the health sector by restoring and upgrading priority facilities including strategic hospitals and health centers, improving access to essential and specialized healthcare, and easing pressure on existing facilities. Over $18 million is allocated for the digital transformation and institutional development of the Ministry of Finance, aiming to enhance user experience and improve the efficiency and transparency of government financial services by implementing an integrated system for digital transformation and institutional development.

These projects reflect Saudi Arabia’s commitment, through the Saudi Fund for Development, to supporting Syria’s development, improving living conditions and essential services, and rehabilitating infrastructure to help communities access sustainable basic services.

It is noteworthy that the Kingdom has provided through the Saudi Fund for Development two grants to the sister Syrian Arab Republic during September 2025: one for crude oil supplies and another to help cover a portion of public sector salaries in Syria for a three-month period.