Syria, which is ruled by the Assad, is in economic devastation after more than a decade of civil conflict. Conflict, widespread corruption, famine, and a major exodus of trained people have taken their toll, leaving the country vulnerable to exploitation.
Syria's gross domestic output decreased by at least
50% between 2010 and 2019, according to the World Bank, with more than 90% of
the population living in poverty and more than half facing extreme poverty.
Syria's domestic marketplaces have been inundated with inexpensive imports in
this fragile situation.
Iran has increased its exports to Syria, leveraging
its military and political support for Syrian President Bashar Assad's
dictatorship and exploiting and worsening the country's manufacturing base by
monopolizing entire markets.
Since the war began in 2011, the collapse of domestic
manufacturing has created profitable possibilities for businesspeople allied to
the Assad administration to import cheaply built goods from Iran, to the
detriment of Syrian producers.
While few of the grandiose restoration agreements
between Tehran and Damascus have yet to see the light of day, Iran has
succeeded in muscling out local competitors in Syria's pharmaceutical and food
businesses.
Syria had a booming pharmaceuticals industry before to
the uprising that triggered the civil war; roughly 70 plants across the country
met 93 percent of domestic demand and exported to about 60 nations.
However, a decade of war has destroyed these plants as
well as the electricity grid that keeps them running. Thousands of skilled
workers have been forced to flee their homes due to violence and persecution,
while sanctions have restricted access to raw materials and machine components.
As a result, Syria's overall pharmaceutical production capability would have
decreased by nearly 75% by 2020.
"Importing active components for medicines is
extremely complicated and expensive," Hamed, a pharmaceuticals student
nearing graduation at a prestigious Syrian institution, told Arab News.
"Many industries have had to shut down
manufacturing lines due to a lack of active chemicals and energy," he
said.
A significant devaluation of the currency, which began
in late 2019, has exacerbated the difficulties facing Syria's pharmaceuticals
industry, as well as similar challenges in the domestic agricultural sector.
Because of the devaluation, which is linked to the
banking crisis in neighboring Lebanon, imports of critical components such as
seeds, pesticides, fertilizer, diesel, and raw ingredients for the manufacture
of medications have become prohibitively expensive.
To circumvent Western sanctions, Syrian companies and
industrialists have long parked their funds in Lebanese banks. As a result, as
the Lebanese currency fell in value, so did Syrian deposits.
Meanwhile, as Syria's electricity grid has
deteriorated due to years of fighting and neglect, production has grown even
more expensive, with companies and cold-storage facilities forced to rely on
expensive private generators.
All of this comes on top of widespread corruption,
which has long mandated the payment of bribes to local officials, as well as
the loss of key personnel due to military conscription and displacement. As the
cost of Syrian-made goods increased, both foreign and domestic demand dwindled,
and the market for low-cost foreign imports boomed.
Protectionist policies pursued by the regime are
equally disruptive. "Limitations imposed by the Ministry of Health"
on the prices and export of Syrian-produced medications, according to Hamed,
have made local manufacture unprofitable, fueling the black market's rise. The
devastation of Syria's economic capability, along with the depreciation of
Iran's currency as a result of years of Western sanctions, has benefited
Iranian exporters, allowing them to flood the Syrian market with low-cost
goods.
Iran's pharmaceutical exports to Syria, Lebanon, and
Iraq have been particularly successful. Despite the fact that many consumers
see Iranian-made pharmaceuticals as subpar, it has arranged trade exhibitions
and inked distribution partnerships biased in its favor.
Around 75% of the pharmaceuticals sold in Iraq are
brought in via illegal border crossings with Iran. These medications are
frequently nearing their expiration dates or lack the active components needed
to benefit patients.
According to Khedr, a Syrian pharmacist who lives in
the country's west, the quality of Iranian pharmaceuticals is "not
excellent," and they're largely found in state hospitals rather than
private pharmacies, where clients prefer higher-quality options.
Abdullah, a doctor at a Damascus hospital, is
similarly doubtful about the Iranian medications' efficacy.
"Iranian drugs can be available in all Syrian
hospitals, and I use them in my clinic as well," he told Arab News.
"However, they are of poor quality."
However, for many individuals in Syria's impoverished
communities, any medicine is preferable to no medicine. With shortages common,
thanks in part to a black market trade in locally produced items, few people
have any choice than to buy Iranian brands.
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