KOTRA协助韩国企业通过UNDP参与叙利亚重建采购，但未披露具体上市公司订单

KOTRA, together with South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Public Procurement Service, is helping Korean companies enter Syria's emerging reconstruction market through United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) procurement, as eased international sanctions turn the country into a new rebuilding market.
KOTRA held a briefing on participating in Syria projects through partnership with the UNDP on the 24th, joined by the South Korean Embassy in Lebanon, the Public Procurement Service and the UNDP.
Syria is emerging as a new reconstruction market following the easing of U.S. and European Union sanctions last year and the start of full-fledged rebuilding discussions by the international community this year. The World Bank estimated Syria's reconstruction cost at about $216 billion (298.836 trillion won) last October, but with financial institutions maintaining conservative transaction practices and international remittances still restricted, procurement through international organizations such as the UNDP is seen as the most realistic route into the market.
The briefing drew 70 Korean companies interested in the Syrian reconstruction market. The event introduced Syria's economic and financial environment and the UNDP's reconstruction support, followed by one-on-one consultations for UNDP vendor registration.
Qasha Advisory, a Syrian private consulting firm invited to Korea by the South Korean Embassy in Lebanon, explained local economic trends along with the financial transaction environment and investment conditions, including continued restrictions on international remittance channels since the sanctions.
Qasha Advisory is a consulting firm specializing in Syria's political, economic and business environment. It handles investment-climate reports and financial-transaction research commissioned by foreign governments, including the U.S. State Department and South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The UNDP presented its main procurement areas of interest for Syrian recovery projects, including its flagship cooperation program with the Korean government, R.E.V.I.V.E. The areas include infrastructure recovery, energy facilities, hospitals, health centers and medical equipment, water and sewage facilities, and production lines and technical and vocational education and training (TVET). It added that 8.9 million people across 14 Syrian provinces received support last year.
R.E.V.I.V.E. is a humanitarian aid program that helps local people who have lost their homes to armed conflict, natural disasters and other calamities recover early.
KOTRA's Amman trade office presented promising product groups tied to UNDP procurement demand and programs to support entry into the procurement market. The office explained that the Syrian market calls for a phased approach centered on procurement through international organizations, cooperation with local partners, and the supply of materials and equipment solutions, rather than direct investment.
The Public Procurement Service introduced programs to help participating companies make real inroads into the procurement markets of the UNDP and other international organizations. The Government Procurement Export Promotion Association also guided participating companies through vendor registration procedures and advised them on difficulties encountered in entering the market.
Kim Myung-hee, head of KOTRA's Industrial Innovation and Growth Division, said Syria's reconstruction demand is on the rise but that at this stage it is advisable to approach the market through procurement by international organizations and proven transaction structures to reduce risk. "KOTRA will work with related agencies to continue supporting new market opportunities for Korean companies," she said.