The Syrian Planning and Statistics Authority announced today, Tuesday, March 17, that it will conduct a survey covering all camps in Idlib province in northern Syria, to determine the number of families living there.
Walid Mosalli, director of the Planning and Statistics Directorate in Idlib, said the main objective of the survey is to help develop a national plan for the return of camp residents to their areas and to issue a final report containing accurate data based on information collected through the questionnaire.
Mosalli added that the survey will be supervised by a group of field researchers who will count all camps and their residents after completing their training.
He said this information represents the essential first step toward developing a national plan, calling on camp residents to provide accurate information to researchers and explain their living conditions without exaggeration or omission.
He also noted that each researcher will carry an official ID issued by the Authority to identify themselves to camp residents during the planned work period, which is expected to last about 35 days and include visits to all camps across the province.
The Authority had previously said it was continuing to train researchers on the field survey of camps, noting that they would be distributed into several groups
It added that each group receives two days of training on how to conduct the field survey, distribute tasks among team members, and fill out the forms accurately and properly.
Committee to rehabilitate destroyed areas
Syrian transitional President Ahmed al-Sharaa issued Decree No. 59 of 2026, establishing a committee tasked with overseeing the rehabilitation of infrastructure in areas destroyed by war, in preparation for the return of displaced people to their original areas.
According to Article 1 of the decree, issued on March 8, the Minister of Emergency and Disaster Management will chair the committee, which will also include the ministers of finance, public works and housing, social affairs and labor, and local administration and environment.
The committee will also include the governors of Aleppo, Hama, and Idlib, in addition to the director of international cooperation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates.
Article 2 of the decree defines the committee’s tasks along two main tracks: preparing basic infrastructure in destroyed areas to facilitate residents’ return and secure the requirements for a dignified life, and taking all possible measures to improve services for citizens living in areas of internal displacement while providing the support needed to ease the impact of displacement and humanitarian suffering.
Article 3 stipulates that the committee will meet every 15 days, or whenever needed at the invitation of its chair. It may also seek the assistance of experts and relevant bodies to complete its tasks.
As part of monitoring performance, Article 4 requires the committee to submit monthly reports to the Presidency, detailing the results of its work and the achievements made on the ground.
Reconstruction challenges
These government moves come amid widespread destruction affecting many cities and areas in Syria after 14 years of war. Reconstruction requires exceptional local and international efforts in light of complex economic, political, and security challenges.
Accurate estimates of reconstruction costs in Syria remain unavailable because of the scale of destruction the country has suffered since 2011. However, some of the main figures cited place the cost between $250 billion and $400 billion, according to estimates by the World Bank and the Carnegie Middle East Center, while other estimates put it at more than $800 billion.
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