Syrian Arab Republic

The Syrian Arab Republic is located in the Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and Turkey. Currently, Syria does not have a formal climate change adaptation strategy.

Syria has a hot, dry desert climate with sunny summers from June to August, and mild, rainy winters along the coast from December to February. Damascus periodically experiences cold weather with snow or sleet. Syria’s terrain consists primarily of semiarid desert plateaus, narrow coastal plains, and mountains in the west. Some of the current environmental issues in Syria include soil erosion, desertification, and an inadequate supply of potable water. Should climate change increase mean surface temperatures, current environmental issues in Syria could be exacerbated. Water supplies are particularly scarce and Syria often experiences periods of drought. Further reductions of scarce water supplies in Syria could pose security concerns in the region.

The petroleum and agricultural sectors account for approximately one-half of Syria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Accounting for 18.5 percent of GDP, agriculture is extremely important to Syria’s economy. The impacts of climate change could, therefore, adversely affect the economy of Syria.

Source: CIA - The World Factbook. 2009. Syria. [online]. Available at https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/sy.html. [09 November 2009].