Employment-intensive labour market recovery from the earthquakes in Syria

One year after the earthquake, daily workers remain highly vulnerable due to wage cuts and job losses, worsening poverty levels. The devaluation of currency has further driven up material costs while wages have declined. Before the 2023 earthquake, 88% of households already struggled to meet living costs, with many earning below the absolute poverty line, according to an ILO survey.

To address this crisis, the ILO is implementing an Employment-Intensive approach, combining infrastructure rehabilitation with immediate job creation, skills development, and improved working conditions. These efforts align with the ILO’s mission to promote social justice, decent work, and sustainable development, as outlined in the Decent Work Agenda and SDG 8.

The purpose of the Project is to support the most affected neighbourhoods in Aleppo in the early recovery efforts, creating immediate decent job opportunities through Emergency Employment activities applying employment-intensive approaches.

The ILO intends to target the district of Qadi Askar in the City of Aleppo and Al Ramosah recycling station as locations of the activities of this project. The activities engage 142 skilled and low-skilled workers for a duration of 3 months, including 25% women and 3% people with disability (PWD).

The community works include debris removal, sidewalk rehabilitation, and repair of sewage networks and roads potholes, sewerage and rainwater manholes clearing, as well as material recycling, and other works proposed by the local communities.

By the end of 2024, the project had generated 142 short-term decent jobs, contributing to 11,223.1 workdays in the targeted neighbourhoods inside Aleppo city. 

Significant progress was achieved in restoring essential utilities along 13.413 kilometres of road axes, including:

• cleaning of 1,941 points 
• maintenance of 335 points 
• installation of 22 manhole covers and 23 concrete covers 
• welding of 85 manhole covers and rain grills 
• raising of 61 manholes and 133 rain grills 
• removal of 678.458 cubic meters of debris 

Infrastructure rehabilitation enhanced mobility through:

• 718.11 cubic meters of levelling and foundation work 
• 189.1 square meters of block work 
• 1,839 meters of sidewalk installation 
• 445 meters of sidewalk painting 
• 1,206.1 square meters of tile and concrete casting 
• 333.4 square meters of plastering

Additional efforts included:

• 108.5 square meters of agricultural works 
• maintenance of 40.5 meters of metal fencing 
• rehabilitation of 8 metal games with painting 
• improvements to 47 streets 

Furthermore, debris removal efforts cleared 250.15 cubic meters of waste from 16 streets, while the debris recycling station processed 516.477 cubic meters of materials, producing 10,935 tiles, 8,815 blocks, 7,308 sidewalk units, and 417 sidewalk bases. 

Through solid planning, clear execution, and collaborative stakeholder engagement, the project met its milestones, achieving significant progress in line with its strategic objectives.