This book comes amidst the heated debate about the concept of early recovery and the appropriateness of the current phase in Syria to introduce and explore this concept. This is in light of the absence of the necessary instability to initiate early recovery, and the absence of a comprehensive national plan for it given the existing governance divisions. Regional and international actors involved in the Syrian file are also increasingly embracing this term and incorporating it into their current agendas. This was clearly demonstrated by the recent United Nations initiative, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), launching what it called the Early Recovery Strategy for Syria for the period 2024-2028.
Thus, addressing the topic of early recovery in Syria is important, as it represents one of the most prominent changes that have begun to take shape over the past few years, with the emergence of indicators demonstrating the varying dynamics of early recovery in the current areas of influence, which are distinct in terms of local actors, needs, resources, and capabilities. In light of the outcomes of the current scenario, characterized by the strengthening of areas of influence and the faltering political process, The policies of local, regional, and international actors have begun to adapt to this reality and implement early recovery projects in these areas, despite the fragility of political and security stability, the varying capacities of local actors to implement these projects, the specificities of the local reality in each region, and the political context associated with the early recovery process within these regions. Therefore, what distinguishes the early recovery phase is the significant overlap between the political, economic, and social components; the success of recovery in each component depends on its success in the others, in addition to being affected by a range of internal and external variables. This necessitates an attempt to deconstruct the three components of early recovery, to understand the variables relevant to this process, and to define its requirements, conditions, and criteria for ensuring its success, leading to the reconstruction phase.
Based on the above, and given the importance of the early recovery phase as it is the stage that is supposed to transition the country from a phase of conflict to a phase of peace and stability, thus laying the groundwork for the future reconstruction phase, the Omran Center for Strategic Studies has been working over the past years to identify the dynamics of early recovery and track its activities through a variety of research outputs. This book comes in the context of this accumulated interest in early recovery and an attempt to encompass as much as possible its various aspects. The book is the outcome of the papers from the second research conference organized by the Omran Center in collaboration with Mardin Artuklu University on May 17, 2024. The conference, titled “Early Recovery in Syria – Reality and Future Approaches,” featured a wide range of Syrian and Arab researchers and academics, who presented presentations and research papers that touched on various aspects of early recovery in Syria. Perhaps the focus of most research contributions on studying northwestern Syria is due to the participants’ backgrounds and research interests, as well as the difficulties encountered in research from other Syrian regions. The research included in this book includes eleven research papers covering diverse topics, focusing on a range of dimensions related to early recovery. This paper attempts to diagnose the reality and shed light on the most significant problems facing northwestern Syria in the context of our discussion of this topic. It also attempts to highlight the efforts made by local and international stakeholders to advance early recovery, and attempts to develop recommendations to help overcome challenges and address the problems impeding early recovery in these regions.
The book begins its first research paper with a topic of utmost importance in addressing early recovery: water resources, a fundamental pillar of early recovery for achieving social and economic stability. This paper also addresses the major challenges facing the north and northwestern regions of Syria in terms of water security after years of conflict and the deterioration of water infrastructure. The paper examines in-depth the role of water in promoting early recovery and identifies the relevant components and challenges in these regions. The researcher employed a critical analysis approach to international cooperation literature on emergency aid and early recovery in the water sector. He demonstrated the role of water and its facilities in the transition from humanitarian aid to early recovery projects that contribute to enhancing food security as an emergency response and revitalizing economic sectors linked to agricultural activities as medium- and long-term development. He reviewed his and his research team’s experience in identifying and rehabilitating part of the Al-Roj Plain network in northern Syria as an early recovery project during the conflict. This project was carried out using a complex methodology that blends research and applied approaches.
The second paper focuses on the reality of recovery in the housing sector, given the significant activity observed in this sector in northwestern Syria due to the high demand for housing. The paper aims to analyze the reality of safe housing governance in northwestern Syria by presenting the case of NGO initiatives to house displaced persons in the Azaz region. The paper attempts to analyze the reality of the problems resulting from the hybrid response to housing initiatives implemented by non-governmental organizations in light of the protracted conflict in the region. This is in light of the challenges facing the housing sector resulting from the complexities of the political and security context and the targeting of official and informal networks by de facto authorities to achieve some economic gains and privileges in the implemented housing projects. In addition, the implemented projects suffer from a lack of experience and good planning, which has led to the emergence of residential communities not connected to infrastructure and threatened by environmental hazards. At the same time, the absence of community participation in these projects and the disparity in land and housing ownership have also become prominent. Consequently, the initiatives warn of
