Two young men walk through a narrow alley in Damascus

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ILO expands decent work opportunities for returnees and communities in Syria

As Syrians return to their communities, the ILO is working with partners to help people rebuild livelihoods while strengthening institutions that can support a sustainable recovery.

2 November 2026

Content also available in: العربية

DAMASCUS, Syria (ILO) – For the growing number of Syrians returning home after years of displacement, finding a job and rebuilding a livelihood is among the most immediate needs.

According to Maha Kattaa, ILO Regional Chief Technical Advisor, a total of around four million people have returned to their communities in Syria, including approximately two million Syrians returning from neighbouring countries and a further two million internally displaced people who have moved back to their villages and communities. “There are large numbers of returnees who need job opportunities in Syria,” Kattaa said. “For this reason, the ILO is now working with a number of local and international partners to promote the creation of decent work, providing job and training opportunities, supporting people in starting their own businesses, and helping them access financing.”

The approach reflects a broader effort to move beyond individual training or livelihood interventions towards pathways that can help people enter the labour market, establish and grow businesses, and access sustainable sources of income.

ILO Official speaking at the training — Maha Kattaa, ILO Regional Chief Technical Advisor, discusses decent work opportunities for returnees in Syria.

From skills to jobs and enterprises

The ILO has recently launched a range of activities in Syria focusing on employment services, skills development, entrepreneurship, small and medium-sized enterprise development, social protection and social insurance.

A key component is the ILO’s Start and Improve Your Business (SIYB) programme, which supports potential and existing entrepreneurs in developing the skills needed to establish, manage and grow sustainable businesses. Throughout its implementation, it aims to reach 3,000 entrepreneurs and aspiring business owners across Syria, with particular attention to returnees, internally displaced people, host communities and other vulnerable groups.

But training is only one part of the pathway.

Participants will also be supported to identify viable business opportunities, strengthen their business plans and management skills, improve their financial readiness, and connect with appropriate financial services and financing opportunities.

two men inside a workshop in Syria — Men at a local workshop in Damascus, Syria, where access to sustainable livelihoods remains vital to economic recovery.

Putting an integrated approach into practice

Harran al-Awamid is a case in point. In the village, the ILO is working with national and local partners to link entrepreneurship support with broader efforts to expand employment and local economic growth.

The area is home to an estimated 23,000 returnees, making access to livelihoods and particularly important for returning families and the communities receiving them.

As part of these efforts, women in Harran al-Awamid are taking part in the Improve Your Business (IYB) programme, implemented jointly by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour, the ILO and the Municipality of Harran al-Awamid.

Participants include women who have returned from neighbouring countries and areas of displacement. Through the programme, they are strengthening their capacity to manage and develop their businesses, while addressing challenges related to business sustainability, income generation and access to markets.

Business development services, stronger market linkages and access to appropriate financing can help small enterprises become more sustainable, grow and, ultimately, create additional employment across Syria’s local communities.

A woman walks through a neighbourhood marked by years of conflict in Damascus, Syria.

Linking local opportunities with labour market needs

The work in Harran al-Awamid also seeks to tap into the area’s broader economic potential, including agriculture, historically an important source of local livelihoods, and the growing renewable energy sector.

To help local workers benefit from anticipated investments in renewable energy, the ILO and Al-Herafi Energy Company are working to develop an integrated solar energy training centre that will equip young people and jobseekers with the practical and technical skills needed to access emerging jobs in the sector.

Strengthening the institutions behind decent work

Alongside direct support to workers and entrepreneurs, the ILO is also working to strengthen the institutions responsible for employment and social protection services.

Kattaa mentioned work on national employment services as well as training on social protection and social insurance for staff from the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour, other government institutions, and the national institutions responsible for social security and social insurance.

“We are all working together today to support these people and strengthen the capacities of government institutions so that they can carry out their work in this area,” she said.

Women walk through Damascus, Syria, where stronger employment and social protection services are vital to recovery.

Building pathways towards decent work

For Kattaa, the scale of return makes that work particularly urgent.

“The challenge is not simply to provide short-term assistance, but to help create the conditions in which returning Syrians and the communities receiving them can rebuild livelihoods – while strengthening the systems and institutions needed to support employment and economic recovery over the longer term.”

These activities are being advanced through programmes including PROSPECTS, funded by the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and the DAR programme, supported by the European Union, in cooperation with national and local partners.