Syrian Center for Policy Research:
The bulletin provides an independent assessment of consumer prices and the rate of inflation in all Syrian regions, based on a monthly survey of consumer prices carried out by the Syrian Center for Policy Research (SCPR) since October 2020. The SCPR had developed a methodology for building a price index based on components of consumer basket, weighting, and market selection (See SCPR’s Consumer Price Index in Syria)
This bulletin presents the findings of the monthly consumer price survey and the changes in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for December 2023 (with 2021 as the base year) broken down by region and the major consumption groups. Based on the CPI changes, the bulletin provides an estimate of the cost of living and poverty lines at the local level in all Syrian regions.
The following results are highlighted:
- In December 2023, the general CPI achieved annual inflation (Y-o-Y) of 139.6 per cent and monthly inflation (M-o-M) of 7 per cent.
- In December 2023, Damascus Governorate marked the highest monthly inflation rate (M-o-M), at 17.9 per cent in light of the significant increase in the prices of housing rents and housing-related services, followed by Quneitra at 7.3 per cent, then the Rural Damascus and Homs at 7.2 per cent each. The governorate of As-Sweida recorded the lowest monthly inflation rate in December 2023, at 2.8 per cent, followed by Idleb at 2.9 per cent.
- In December 2023, the Food and non-alcoholic beverages group contributed significantly to the monthly inflation (M-o-M) with 7 per cent, making up 38.9 per cent of the total, followed by the Housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuel oils group with a contribution of 28.6 per cent, trailed by the Health group at 14.7 per cent.
- The inflation that occurred in December 2023 led to a decrease in the real wages of workers in the public sector in GoS areas by 9 per cent compared to the previous month of November, for employees in SIG and SSG departments by 1.5 per cent, and for employees in AA departments by 6.1 per cent, in light of the stability of wages at current prices during the month.
- In December 2023, the abject poverty line for families, serving as an indicator of food insecurity, rose to SYP 2.34 million per month, marking an increase of SYP 150 thousand from November 2023. The lower poverty line increased by SYP 236 thousand from the previous month to reach 3.68 million, while the upper poverty line saw an SYP 326 thousand increase, reaching 5.1 million. The highest values for poverty lines were recorded in the governorates of Damascus, Dara’a, and Ar-Raqqa, while As-Sweida and Deir-Ezzor recorded the lowest poverty lines in December 2023
- In November 2023, the wage gap from the upper poverty line reached 89.7 per cent for university-educated employees in the public sector, 58.9 per cent for private sector workers, and 58..7 per cent for civil society workers. In all three instances.
To read the bulletin in English:
Monthly Bulletin – Issue (12), 2023 (En)
To read the bulletin in Arabic:
Monthly Bulletin – Issue (12), 2023 (Ar)
