What is the GSP?

The Standard GSP targets developing countries that are classified by the World Bank as lower or lower-middle income countries and which do not have equal preferential access to the EU market through any other arrangement. Standard GSP beneficiary countries can benefit from duty suspension for non-sensitive products as well as duty reductions for sensitive products across approximately 66% of all EU tariff lines.

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At a glance: GSP beneficiaries' preferential imports to the EU

group

22,12 M

Population

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Presidential Republic

Government

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1.30%

GDP Growth

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4.4% (2010)

Inflation

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$ 8,97 B

GDP

Facts about Syria's economy

Conflict-struck Economy

The ongoing conflict in Syria has a severe impact on the life of the Syrian population. Likewise, the conflict led to an immense decline in the per-capita income and an increase in poverty. Therefore, Syria was granted access to special funds for the world’s poorest nations in 2016.

Export Products

Syria's export sector is dominated by agricultural products, including olive oil, cumin seeds, tomatoes, pistachios, almonds, lentils, and figs. Another important export product is calcium phosphate.

Trade Partners

Syria's trade relations are very diversified. The three most important trading partners, the EU, China, and the Ukraine, together only account for roughly 22,5 % of total trade.

Economic Structure

The agricultural sector contributes about 28% to the overall GDP and employs about a quarter of the Syrian population. The processing of cotton as well as wool and nylon are important for the manufacturing sector supplemented by industrial engineering industries including cement, glass, batteries, and pharmaceuticals. Food processing is another important sector and includes the processing of salt which is extracted from the country's salt lakes, vegetable oils, canned fruits and vegetables, tobacco, and dairy products.

Usage of GSP Preferences

About 2% of overall EU imports from Syria are imported using GSP preferential tariffs. The preference utilisation rate, which represents the ratio of preferential imports to GSP eligible imports, currently stands at 4%.

Trade with the EU

Total trade with the EU summed up to € 376 million in 2022. With a share of 8.7% the EU is Syria's most important trading partner, ranking first as a source of imports and third as an export destination for Syrian products.

Syria and the EU (2022)

Imports from Syria by product section

Imports from Syria over time (in € m)

SYRIA AND THE EU’s GSP

Economic Impact

55%

Over 50% of Syria's exports to the EU are eligible for reduced tariffs granted by the GSP.

4%

With a preference utilisation rate of 4%, Syria uses tariff reductions granted under the GSP for only a small fraction of eligible exports to the EU market.

Preference utilisation and export diversification

Syria's imports to the EU

Preference Utilisation vs. total eligible imports

Syria’s preference utilisation rate dropped considerably between 2019 and 2022. The overall trend, however, is positive and Syria utilises GSP preferences for about half of its eligible exports. In recent years, this has mainly been driven by increased preference utilisation and rising exports total exports of mineral products, as well as articles of wood, cork and other natural materials. Nonetheless, there remains room for better use of the preferential market access among the most prominent export sections, including for example coffee, tea, and spices, prepared food and beverages, as well as apparel and clothing.

The largest product sections under the GSP

The civil war had a considerable impact on Syria’s export diversification. The number of traded tariff lines decreased substantially since the beginning of the war. The most prominent sections under GSP is prepared foodstuff and beverages (S04b) and fruits, nuts and vegetables (S02b), which combined account for about half of preferential imports. Thus, overall exports to the EU remain concentrated on a small bandwidth of products. Despite almost 100% of imports of articles of stone, plaster, as well as apparel, clothing and other textile articles are eligible for GSP preferences, the country did not make use of GSP regulation in 2022.

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

As a beneficiary of the Standard GSP, Syria is not obligated to ratify any conventions to be able to benefit from preferential access to the European market. Nonetheless, Syria has ratified all 15 core international conventions on human and labour rights. This includes 7 UN human rights conventions and 8 ILO conventions on labour standards. Additionally, Syria has ratified 8 conventions on environmental protection and 3 conventions on good governance aspects. Syria has also signed the UN Convention against Corruption.

Core international conventions on human rights and labour standards

Ratified

Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (1948)
International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (1969)
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1976)
International Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural Rights (1976)
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (1981)
Convention Against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (1987)
Convention on the Rights of the Child (1990)
Convention concerning Forced or Compulsory Labour, No 29 (1930)
Convention concerning Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise, No 87 (1948)
Convention concerning the Application of the Principles of the Right to Organise and to Bargain Collectively, No 98 (1949)
Convention concerning Equal Remuneration of Men and Women Workers for Work of Equal Value, No 100 (1951)
Convention concerning the Abolition of Forced Labour, No 105 (1957)
Convention concerning Discrimination in Respect of Employment and Occupation, No 111 (1958)
Convention concerning Minimum Age for Admission to Employment, No 138 (1973)
Convention concerning the Prohibition and Immediate Action for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour, No 182 (1999)

Additional Conventions

Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (1973)
Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (1987)
Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal (1989)
Convention on Biological Diversity (1992)
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (1992)
Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety (2000)
Stockholm Convention on persistent Organic Pollutants (2001)
Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (1998)
United Nations Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs (1961)
United Nations Convention on Psychotropic Substances (1971)
United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (1988)
United Nations Convention against Corruption (2004)

EU-Syria Bilateral Development Assistance

DG NEAR

Access all info about EU-Syria relations on the European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations (DG NEAR) website: https://neighbourhood-enlargement.ec.europa.eu/european-neighbourhood-policy/countries-region/syria_en

Opportunities in Syria

Syria has set up seven industrial zones allowing for different production activities

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