Operating in Syria: Risks, Market Entry Challenges and How Companies Can Operate Safely

For more than a decade, operating in Syria was effectively off the table for international companies. Conflict, sanctions and political isolation made sustained commercial activity unsustainable. Today, that calculus is beginning to change.

As regional diplomacy resumes and international institutions cautiously re-engage, Syria is re-emerging as a market under consideration, not for rapid expansion, but for careful, long-term positioning. Energy firms, logistics operators, telecom providers, agribusinesses, development financiers and professional services firms are once again asking whether Syria can be entered responsibly, and how operations can be conducted safely in one of the world’s most complex environments. The interest is real but so is the hesitation.

Why Companies Are Looking at Syria Again

The drivers are structural rather than speculative. Syria’s reconstruction needs are vast, conservatively estimated at over $200 billion. Power generation, ports, airports, telecoms, transport corridors, food production and basic services all require long-term investment. At the same time, regional actors, particularly in the Gulf, are signalling a willingness to finance recovery, while international financial institutions are re-establishing channels of engagement.

For large companies, the attraction is not short-term profit. It is long-term positioning. Being present early, shaping standards and understanding the operating environment before competition intensifies are strategic advantages, provided they are pursued carefully.

Most boards, however, are under no illusion. Syria remains one of the most complex markets in the world.

The Reality of Operating in Syria

The first challenge is security - Syria is not a single risk environment. Conditions vary significantly between cities, industrial zones, ports, rural areas and transport corridors. What is viable in one location may be unacceptable fifty kilometres away. Security dynamics also change over time, sometimes quickly, which means assumptions can expire faster than project timelines.

For companies used to stable operating theatres, this creates uncertainty. But for those with access to reliable local insight and disciplined movement planning, security risk in Syria is not binary. It is situational and, in many cases, manageable.

Compliance presents a second, equally serious challenge. Syria remains subject to multiple overlapping systems and regimes, with complex rules governing counterparties, sectors, financial transactions and supply chains. The greatest compliance failures in Syria rarely come from deliberate misconduct; they come from incomplete due diligence, indirect exposure through partners, or assumptions based on outdated guidance.

Infrastructure constraints compound the difficulty. Power supply is inconsistent, logistics networks are uneven, and transport infrastructure varies widely in reliability. Airports and ports function, but capacity and predictability cannot be taken for granted. For travelling staff and project teams, this increases exposure during ground movements and heightens reliance on trusted local support.

Underlying all of this is the issue that ultimately decides whether projects proceed. Boards and senior management are asking hard questions about how staff will move, where they will work, how medical and emergency response will function, and how evacuation would be managed if conditions deteriorate.

How Serious Companies Are Approaching Market Entry

Very few firms are entering Syria in the traditional sense. Instead, most are adopting a phased approach that allows them to learn without over-committing. Initial engagement often begins with research, political and security risk analysis, and partner vetting. This is followed by limited physical presence such as short fact finding or technical visits or project scoping exercises. Only once assumptions have been tested do companies consider a more sustained operational footprint.

This approach reflects a simple reality: in Syria, confidence is built through proximity and experience, not spreadsheets alone.

What Operating Safely Actually Looks Like

Across sectors, the requirements for operating responsibly in Syria are remarkably consistent. Companies that succeed are those that understand the country at ground level. They understand how decisions are made, how movement really works, how local relationships function, and where informal risk sits alongside formal structures.

They invest early in journey management, movement planning and crisis response frameworks. They treat partner and subcontractor due diligence as a continuous process, not a one-off check. They integrate security considerations into project design, rather than bolting them on later. Crucially, they do not attempt to manage Syria remotely.

The Value of Local Presence

One of the clearest lessons from early movers is that operating in Syria without an established local base is extremely difficult. Reliable information, secure workspace, trusted networks and the ability to support visiting teams on the ground all depend on having real infrastructure in place.

Organisations that have maintained a continuous understanding of Syria through long- term engagement, local staff, and secure in-country facilities are better positioned to support safe entry and sustained operations. They understand not just the risks, but how those risks are navigated in practice.

For companies exploring Syria today, working with partners who already operate securely inside the country, maintain compliant infrastructure, and understand how to support visiting teams can significantly reduce uncertainty and shorten decision cycles.

Opportunity, With Eyes Open

Syria is not a market for opportunism or haste. It is a market for patience, preparation and realism. The companies that will shape its recovery are unlikely to be the most aggressive entrants. They will be the ones that understand the environment deeply, protect their people rigorously, and build operations that can withstand political and security volatility.

For those willing to do that work properly, Syria is no longer unthinkable. But it remains unforgiving of shortcuts. The question facing most organisations today is not whether Syria will matter again. It is whether they are prepared to engage with it on its own terms.