Upon its participation in the Brussels Conference on Supporting the Future of Syria and the Region, ESCWA distributed on Monday a paper on the conference's National Agenda for the Future of Syria Programme (NAFS).
The paper read the following:
"Six blood-drenched years have passed since the start of the Syrian crisis, which is proving to be one of the severest humanitarian crises facing the international community since the end of the Second World War, if not the severest. So far, the international community has been unable to find a political solution to stop the bloodshed and to limit its repercussions for the region and the world.
Around 470,000 people have lost their lives, equivalent to over 3.5 per cent of the remaining population in Syria after more than a quarter of its people were forced to seek refuge across the world, and over 6.3 million Syrians have been internally displaced. The gravity of the crisis has become the greatest challenge to global peace, because of regional and international military transformations and interventions and the rise of terrorist movements in Syria and the rest of the world.
Studies conducted by experts under the National Agenda for the Future of Syria Programme show the wide-scale destruction in the country. As at the end of 2016, the damage to physical capital has been estimated at approximately $100 billion, in addition to losses in the opportunity cost of GDP growth placed at over $228 billion. Had the crisis not erupted, GDP was expected to grow by over 28 per cent over the past six years. Instead, GDP has lost over 57 per cent of its value since 2010, leading to an unprecedented increase in the number of Syrians living below the poverty line to 80-85 per cent compared with 13 per cent in 2007.
The enormity of the destruction is most evident in the housing sector, representing 30 per cent of total destruction, with over 50 per cent of residences damaged and still at risk given the continuing war. Industry, a key vital sector in Syria, has suffered 18 per cent of the total destruction, negatively affecting employment and growth and causing trade imbalances.
The agricultural sector has suffered 9 per cent of total destruction to physical capital, in addition to facing significant challenges during the crisis. Before 2011, Syria was committed to high levels of food security and the sector had kept large segments of its workforce above the minimum poverty threshold. Syria was also the fourth global producer of olives and exporter of olive oil.
Today, unfortunately, data show huge losses in wooded areas from war or from felling for heat, because of a lack of heating fuel caused by damage to the oil and gas sector totalling 9 per cent of total destruction, or by the loss of means and equipment to import or subsidize petroleum products because of economic sanctions.
Another key sector significantly affecting daily life is water and electricity, with a 9 per cent share of total destruction. The electricity sector has been considerably damaged following the destruction of its infrastructure and given the lack of means and resources to conduct maintenance work and import spare parts for its smooth operation.
Syria, which used to generate over 8,500 megawatt hours, some of which it exported to neighbouring countries, can no longer produce 15 per cent of its basic electricity needs.
The following figure details the scale of destruction and losses by sector caused by the raging conflict.

Source: NNA