President Al-Sharia announces Syria's commitment to turn the page on the camps by 2027
President Ahmed al-Sharaa announced the Syrian government's commitment to completely close the camp file by 2027 as part of a comprehensive national plan aimed at resettling the displaced and securing their return to their areas of origin, in a way that guarantees them a dignified and stable life.
This came in a recorded speech before the 79th session of the World Health Assembly, in which he said that the world is going through a moment that requires a common international will that restores the priority of human health and opens the way towards a safer and more just future.
The World Health Assembly is the highest decision-making organ within WHO, meeting annually to formulate international health policies, approve budgets and guide WHO's work.
President Al-Shara explained that the Syrian vision is based on the principle of "human health first", as a sustainable national goal, as Syria is working to build a health system that ensures justice and inclusiveness for every citizen, and its services extend to the entire Syrian geography.
He added that the reconstruction process in Syria establishes a sustainable environmental and health reality that preserves the security of future generations, in light of the close link between climate change and public health, which the World Assembly places at the top of its priorities.
International Partnerships and Leadership in Health Security
He pointed out that the close link between climate change and health, which the association places at the top of its agenda, is in line with the reconstruction track in Syria, which aims to "establish a healthy and sustainable environment" that protects future generations and ensures their stability.
President Al-Shara stressed that the major challenges that the country has faced, and which it continues to overcome steadily, have given it "additional immunity that makes it a key pillar in protecting global health security", indicating that Syria continues its national project based on the will of its people and the competencies of its people inside and outside the country, who constitute "a national asset and an authentic partner" in the construction process, within the framework of international cooperation and fruitful partnerships.
President Al-Sharaa concluded by stressing that Syria is working today to consolidate constructive partnerships based on the exchange of experiences and resources to serve human health, saying: "We extend our hands to add value to our experience in this joint humanitarian effort."
"Syria Without Camps" Initiative
One of the most ambitious national plans in the recovery phase, the "Syria Without Camps" initiative is a comprehensive vision launched by President Ahmed al-Sharaa with the aim of ending the phenomenon of displacement camps and closing them completely by the end of 2026, and seeks to move nearly one million displaced people from tents and emergency shelters to permanent housing in their towns and villages of origin, and move from reliance on relief to local production and self-reliance.
The initiative is based on large-scale funding, the most prominent of which is Saudi support of $1.5 billion, which is allocated exclusively to ending the reality of the camps, according to UN reports, which enables the implementation of large-scale rehabilitation projects in areas of return. These projects include the restoration of schools and health centers, the restart of water and electricity networks, and the removal of mines and remnants of war, to ensure a safe environment that encourages people to settle down.
The plan adopts a dual model of reconstruction, combining a private-sector-led investment track to rebuild damaged regular cities, and a government-supported rural track to revitalize villages and towns, with efforts concentrated in the governorates that contain the largest percentage of camps, especially Idlib, Aleppo, Latakia, Hama, and Suwayda.