Syria's new leaders are implementing a radical overhaul of the country's shattered economy, including plans to lay off a third of all public sector workers and privatize state-owned companies that have dominated the half-century of rule by the family of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. This was reported by Reuters, according to UNN.
Details
The economic overhaul began just a few weeks after the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad's regime on December 8. The government says it will fight corruption and waste, including by getting rid of so-called "ghost employees" - people who were paid without actually working. However, the speed of the changes has sparked protests among civil servants who fear massive dismissals on religious grounds.
It is reported that under Assad and his father, Syria organized a paramilitary, state-run economy that favored a narrow circle of allies and family members, while members of the family's Alawite sect were widely represented in the public sector.
As the new Syrian Minister of Economy, 40-year-old former energy engineer Bazil Abdel Hanan, told Reuters, Syria is now undergoing a serious transition to a "competitive market economy.
Under transitional President Ahmed al-Shara'a, the government will work to privatize state-owned industrial companies, which Khanan said total 107 and are mostly unprofitable. However, he vowed to keep "strategic" energy and transportation assets in state hands. He did not name the companies to be sold. Syria's main industries include oil, cement, and steel.
Finance Minister Mohammad Abazid said in an interview that some state-owned companies apparently exist solely to steal resources and will be closed.
"We expected corruption, but not on this scale," Abazid said.
According to Abazid, based on a preliminary check, only 900,000 of the 1.3 million people who receive state salaries actually go to work.
"That means there are 400,000 ghost names," Abazid, 38, said in his office. "Removing these names will save significant resources.
Administrative Development Minister Mohammad Alskaf, who oversees public sector staffing, told Reuters that the state would need between 550,000 and 600,000 employees - less than half the current number.
According to Abazid, the goal of the reforms, which also aim to simplify the tax system through an amnesty on fines, was to remove obstacles and encourage investors to return to Syria.
Recall
The Syrian government has asked Russia to extradite Bashar al-Assad, who fled to Moscow in December. Damascus is also demanding compensation for its support of the Assad regime and participation in the reconstruction of the country.