General profile Digital profile

Syria

Digital snapshot – key policies and laws

In early 2025, the country had about 9.01 million internet users, 35.8% internet penetration, and 19.5 million mobile connections, while Internet Society Pulse rated its overall internet resilience at 31/100 and e-government readiness at 38.88.

Sanctions lift and the digital reset

Following the fall of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, Syria entered a new phase of economic reopening, also with implications for the digital space. A key turning point came when the US revoked broad country-based sanctions, effective 1 July 2025, removing long-standing barriers to global digital integration. For years, sanctions had constrained access to software, cloud services, financial platforms, and international partnerships, shaping a highly restricted digital environment. Their removal contributed to widening the space for reform. Syrian businesses, developers, and users began reconnecting to global tools and markets, while policymakers moved to attract investment and rebuild digital infrastructure.

Reports indicate that Syria is speeding up digital transformation across public institutions as part of wider administrative reform, with ministries since 2025 expanding electronic platforms and digital systems to reduce paper-based procedures, improve efficiency, and strengthen transparency in public services. The updated national digital transformation strategy runs to 2030 in three phases: a foundational stage focused on infrastructure and legislation, a transition phase (2025–2027) introducing interactive services, and a final phase (2027–2030) aimed at full integration and data-driven governance. The country is now in the second phase, focused on rolling out interactive services; progress cited includes the National Data Center, government cloud services, digital signatures, a state data-integration platform, the “Wajab” complaints platform, e-procurement systems, and broader digitisation across ministries such as health, education, justice, and interior. In addition, there is a national cloud computing policy adopted in December 2022, a cybersecurity strategy adopted in June 2023, and Law No. 12 of 2024 on electronic personal data protection, with executive instructions issued in July 2024.

Infrastructure and market policy are now moving faster than before. Syria has launched Barq Net, a nationwide FTTP initiative covering all 14 governorates, and announced its first practical 5G pilot in May 2025. Syrian Telecommunications Company signed on to the Medusa submarine cable project in Tartous, while presenting SilkLink as the backbone of a rebuilt national fibre network. In parallel, the state-backed SEEP Online e-commerce platform has new partnerships with Visa and Mastercard.

Emerging technologies remain at an early stage. Syria has discussed AI governance in regional forums and presented AI as a tool to improve government performance, but there is no standalone national AI strategy or AI law.

Syria’s permanent mission to the UN in Geneva:

Syria’s Permanent Mission in Geneva represents the Syrian Arab Republic at the UN Office at Geneva and at other international organisations based in Switzerland. According to UN Geneva’s official Blue Book, the mission is located at the International Centre Cointrin (ICC), Route de Pré-Bois 20, Geneva, and the current Permanent Representative is H.E. Mr Haydar Ali Ahmad, who presented his credentials in February 2023. The mission is Syria’s main diplomatic channel in Geneva for multilateral engagement on issues such as human rights, humanitarian affairs, disarmament, health, labour, and other UN processes.

Official UNOG website: https://www.ungeneva.org/en/blue-book/missions/member-states/syrian-arab-republic