Interview with UNDP Resident Representative

Ali H Al-Za’tari is UN Resident Coordinator and UN Development Programme (UNDP) Resident Representative in Syria. He is working to enhance coordination among UN agencies and facilitate their relations with the government, donor countries and NGOs. His role is to promote a common understanding and approach on how the UN family in Syria will address the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). In excerpts from an interview with IRIN in the capital Damascus, Za’tari highlighted the organisation’s activities in Syria, as well as the challenges facing the country in relation to poverty, democracy, human rights, and women’s status. QUESTION: What are UNDP’s main areas of concern in Syria? ANSWER: There are three main concerns: Aiding the government and non-governmental organisations in handling and promoting good governance issues; poverty alleviation programmes; and environment and sustainable energy policies. UNDP is a bridge of technical assistance linking Syria and the world in terms of what Syria could benefit from and what Syria could provide to global development efforts. The UNDP office has been in Syria for at least five decades, and is staffed by Syrians and a small number of international staff. Q: What are the biggest challenges faced in Syria? A: There are many challenges that face Syria internally and externally. Concerning external challenges, one has to mention regional political considerations in Lebanon, Iraq and Palestine, as well as the UN Security Council Resolution 1559 [resolution passed in 2004 calling for respect for Lebanon's sovereignty and political independence]. No one doubts the sensitive regional set-up which has been created as a result of the occupation of Iraq or the inability to finally settle a peace agreement with the Israelis. Syria is a key country in the region and is involved in defining and reacting to these considerable complex regional issues. For certain, Syria’s policies are geared to achieving maximum stability for the people of this region and Syria’s commitment to support the UN has always been provided and felt. Internally, the most important challenge to Syria is to implement a reform policy that will ensure a sustainable economic role, controlled population growth, equal [wealth]distribution, sustainable environmental policies, good governance practices and policies, ensuring the participation of growing civil society organisations and with them alleviating the causes and symptoms of poverty. Q: How bad is the poverty situation in Syria? A: Syria is not a poor country, but a segment of the population is poor. A recent study conducted by UNDP, the State Planning Commission, and the Central Statistics Bureau indicated that the percentage of Syrians who are defined as poor is 11.4. This percentage is concentrated in the rural communities in the northeastern governorates and pockets in the coastal areas. It has been found that poverty correlates with either illiteracy or lack of proper education in a large family. Poverty has been found to increase the chances of unemployment and illiteracy, while illiteracy considerably increases the instances of poverty. Hence, social and economic policies should be devised for the poor. Q: Democracy and governance is an area UNDP deals with in Syria. How is it being implemented and how much progress has been made on this issue? A: There are different expressions of good governance, and one has to be considerate to the pace of local receptiveness of good governance measures to be implemented. In Syria the list of good governance areas that UNDP is and can be involved in is long. We work closely with the Syrian parliament on three areas; advocacy for the parliament's work, establishing a good reference research unit for parliamentary members, and raising members' awareness and knowledge of issues and bills to be discussed. UNDP is also requested in the governance areas to assist the restructuring of a number of ministries in terms of improving work processes and capacity-building. UNDP is sponsoring the publishing of the National Human Development Report which will be released in the next few weeks and which will focus on education quality. UNDP is also being asked to assist in the conduct of local elections, to be held by 2007. So the degree of involvement is indicative of a growing confidence [in realising] the need to improve governance practices in Syria and UNDP is extremely well placed to provide objective and timely cooperation in this area. Q: How big an issue is human rights in Syria? A: In Syria, citizens enjoy a good number of rights which we in UNDP and the UN have acknowledged, such as the right to development, the right to basic services, and the right to travel, are enjoyed by all Syrians. What is said about human rights in Syria focuses on the freedom of expressing opinion and political affiliation, which certainly needs to be addressed within Syria’s expressed desire at the highest level to reform its policies. Q: How is UNDP working with Syria on the issue of human rights? A: I represent the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights [OHCHR] and facilitate bridging between Syria and this office. An official from this office has so far visited Syria twice and held positive and fruitful discussions with the government and even with a number of human rights activists in Syria, which led to the possibility that we’ll work with the government to strengthen capacity to address human rights conventions that Syria is party to. Q: How free is the press? A: UNDP now has developed a project with the ministries of higher education and information. The objective of the project is to revise media curricula at universities and train Syrian media practioners and professors. We hope to be able to sign this project shortly, especially as many interested donors are working with us and we do feel the enthusiasm of both ministries to implement this project. As I also represent the UN Information Center in Syria, we work closely with the Syrian reporters to be trained by the UN Information Department in New York and elsewhere. I think that the Syrian daily newspapers need to be improved.... However, I have recently noticed and enjoyed more in-depth investigative coverage of local development issues in all newspapers. Q: How would you describe women’s status in Syria compared to other Arab countries? A: I think that the situation of women in Syria compares very favourably as women in Syria have attained many advanced positions which have been facilitated through educational attainment, and the policy of the government of course. However, I don’t think that these policies have reached deep into all sectors or covered all women in Syria - for example, rural women, or the trend that we are seeing in preventing rural girls from continuing their education which in the long run will not produce positive economic and social outcomes in Syria. I also think that Syria needs to develop a much more daring and inclusive gender policy that takes into consideration how other countries have handled these issues.