UN: Rebuilding Syria, Iraq and Gaza will cost $750bn

The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) said yesterday that rebuilding war-torn Syria, Iraq and Gaza will cost around $750 billion.

The war in Syria has caused the destruction of a great deal of residential, educational and industrial facilities. In Iraq, clashes with the Islamic State (ISIS) damaged hundreds of buildings in the north and east of the country.

Meanwhile, Israel destroyed more than 60,000 residential, educational and industrial facilities during 51 days of massive strikes on civilians in Gaza.

While presenting a report, ESCWA’s Chief Economist Abdullah Al-Dardari said that in spite of the instability in the region, he expected more than four per cent economic growth in the Gulf States. He also expected growth from two per cent in 2014 to more than five percent in 2015 in the Maghreb countries.

ESCWA inaugurated its 28th Session under the name “Social Justice in the Policies of Arab States‌”, which started yesterday and ends on Thursday and is being held in the Regency Hotel, Tunis.

The session will highlight the importance of Arab cooperation in establishing new development models to meet growing demands for social justice and equality.

In press remarks made after the end of the first session, Al-Dardari told journalists that the Arab world needs to establish a new bank specialised in the reconstruction of war-torn countries.