WASHINGTON: The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors approved US$225 million in grant financing from the International Development Association for Syria on April 23, allocating US$150 million for water services and US$75 million for health services. The financing will be delivered through two new projects focused on restoring basic public services after years of conflict, with the package expected to improve water, sanitation and health service delivery for about 4.5 million Syrians across the country.
The approval comes against a backdrop of severe damage to Syria’s water network after 14 years of conflict. According to the World Bank, more than half of the country’s water supply infrastructure and about 70% of wastewater treatment plants were severely damaged, while water supply has fallen by about 40% from pre-conflict levels. More than half of the population lacks adequate access to water, sanitation and hygiene services, and water availability has dropped to below 700 cubic meters per person each year.
The Syria Emergency Water Security and Resilient Services Project is designed to restore bulk water supply and wastewater infrastructure in densely populated areas affected by the conflict. It will rehabilitate and climate-proof critical treatment and transmission infrastructure in Idlib, Homs and Hama, procure emergency equipment to help sustain basic services, and rehabilitate priority wastewater treatment infrastructure in Damascus. Project activities also include dam safety assessments and stronger water and climate information systems to improve water resource management and climate resilience.
Water and sanitation priorities
Syria’s health sector has also been hit hard, with damaged facilities, fragmented services, workforce shortages and limited primary health care capacity undermining access and quality. The US$75 million Syria Health System Recovery and Strengthening Project will focus on restoring essential primary care as well as maternal, newborn and child health and nutrition services. The project is set to support 150 high-impact primary health care centers across Syria, particularly facilities serving large populations and vulnerable groups including internally displaced people, returnees, female-headed households and host communities.
The health operation will also strengthen early detection, preparedness and response to pandemics and other health emergencies, while reinforcing the institutional systems and workforce needed to support service delivery. The World Bank said the centers will be selected through a transparent, data-driven process that weighs equity, expected impact, functionality, service capacity and accessibility. Project documents identify Syria’s Ministry of Health as the implementing agency for the health operation, while the water project is to be carried out through the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Energy’s Water Resources Directorate.
Syria recovery funding expands
The latest approvals add to the World Bank’s expanding reengagement in Syria this year. In March, its Board approved a separate US$20 million IDA grant to strengthen public financial management, focusing on budget controls, procurement functions and institutional arrangements intended to improve the use of public funds. The new water and health financing also follows the bank’s October 2025 estimate that Syria’s post-conflict reconstruction bill stood at about US$216 billion, with infrastructure accounting for the largest share of direct physical damage recorded in the assessment.
Taken together, the new grants place water security, sanitation and primary health care at the center of the World Bank’s current Syria financing, with both projects focused on restoring services in areas where conflict damage, displacement and return movements have placed heavy pressure on public systems. The approvals provide new multilateral funding for services that reach households directly and will be implemented through ministries responsible for finance, water resources and health as Syria works to restore basic service delivery after years of disruption. – By Content Syndication Services.