Coronavirus: facing the pandemic, Syria lacks everything

Text by: Paul Khalifeh

With 58 reported cases and 3 deaths in government-controlled areas, Syria appears to be spared the coronavirus pandemic. But these official figures do not necessarily reflect the reality in a country that lacks everything to effectively fight the progression of the pandemic.

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From our correspondent in the region,

When, on May 4, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad expressed his fear that the easing of containment measures would increase the risk of a "  disaster  " in his country, he did not think so well. Because all the conditions are there to cause a real slaughter and a disruption of all economic and social mechanisms if the pandemic were to get out of control.

Yet the number of confirmed cases remains strangely low, compared to what is happening everywhere else in the world. In government-controlled areas, 58 people test positive "only", including 36 healings, and three deaths, according to the most recent figures.

Admittedly, the Syrian authorities reacted quickly and took strict measures, but that is not enough to explain this assessment.

The day after the announcement of the discovery of the first case, on March 22, the authorities decided to close the border posts with Lebanon, prohibiting the passage of all people coming from the neighbor to the west, including Syrian nationals.

"  Only trucks can enter Syria, subject to medical examinations performed on all drivers,  " said a statement from the Interior Ministry.

Isolated localities in Damascus

The preventive measures were gradually tightened. Schools, universities, public gardens, restaurants and places of leisure were closed at the end of March. At the start of April, all shops and stores except the food sector and pharmacies followed. Then a curfew was introduced from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m., coupled with a travel ban between the provinces.

The majority of confirmed cases come from the province of Damascus, notably from Sit Zeinab, south of the capital, a holy place visited by thousands of Shiite pilgrims from Iran, Lebanon and Iraq.

► Read also: Coronavirus: Lebanon, bloodless, resists the pandemic

To prevent the spread of the disease, the authorities isolated the locality and ordered the total containment of its inhabitants. Similar measures were taken in two villages on the Damascus rif, where one case was discovered. The government has also suspended, preventively and provisionally, the enrollment of youths called to military service.

These extreme measures are the most effective tool available to the authorities of a country whose health sector has been devastated by nine years of war that has left hundreds of thousands of people dead and millions displaced. internal and external.

Hospitals are in dire need of everything. The import of medical equipment is hampered by the embargo imposed by Western countries, which makes commercial transactions difficult because the Syrian banking sector is disconnected from the international circuit. Syrian traders and front companies run by men close to the government did their business from Beirut. But the crisis that has plagued Lebanon for more than six months has deprived Syria of its economic lungs and the scarcity of dollars that it knows has considerably dried up the flow of green notes that fed it.

Hydro-alcoholic masks and gels are produced on site in Syria and in sufficient quantity. An entrepreneur even launched into the production of hydroxychloroquine , recommended by Professor Didier Raoult to treat patients with Covid-19. But the country is in dire need of respirators. And it is not the dozen devices offered by Pope Francis at the beginning of May and those that were delivered by the World Health Organization (WHO) that will make up for this lack.

Very few screening tests

The reduced number of reported cases can only be explained by the inadequacy of screening tests. Between 100 and 150 tests are performed daily, which is far below the average needed to determine the course of the disease in the population, which numbers nearly 25 million people, including 18 million in regions controlled by the government. . In comparison, in Lebanon, populated by nearly 6 million people (including Syrian and Palestinian refugees), some 1,000 PCR tests are carried out every day.

The resumption of fighting in Idleb (north-west) after a lull of more than six weeks following a truce negotiated under the aegis of Turkey and Russia may worsen the situation and make the response to the coronavirus more difficult . Dozens of Syrian soldiers have been killed or kidnapped in the past ten days in attacks by the jihadist group Hurras al-Din. Government troops have resumed their bombing of areas controlled by this faction close to al-Qaeda, which has some 1,800 fighters.

The economic crisis remains the most important challenge for the Syrian government. The living conditions of the population, more than 80% of whom live below the poverty line, have deteriorated due to containment measures and the cessation of much of the production activity. The depreciation of the national currency against the dollar accentuates the erosion of the purchasing power of the Syrians.

Food security under threat

According to a report by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Syria is one of the ten countries most food insecure in 2019. Wheat production, which rose in average of 4.1 million tonnes before 2011 fell to 2.2 million tonnes in 2019.

In addition, a large part of the area planted is in the northeast of Syria, in the regions controlled by the autonomous administration set up by the Kurdish forces, supported and protected by the American army.

Last week, the Syrian government decided to simplify administrative formalities and increase the price per tonne of wheat to encourage farmers to sell their produce to the central government in Damascus rather than the autonomous administration.

The country's gradual reopening began on April 29. This does not mean, however, that the battle against the coronavirus is won. "  Although the numbers are limited, that does not mean that they will not explode suddenly in a few days, even a few weeks,  " warned Bashar al-Assad during an address to members of the government committee responsible for the responds to the pandemic.

The authorities called on the population to be vigilant and respect social distancing despite the partial and gradual lifting of the confinement. But they will find it difficult to be heard. "  The vegetable market was crowded today (May 19 )," Ziad, a resident of the coastal town of Tartous, contacted by phone, told RFI. As Eid approaches, people have come down from their villages to sell their produce or to get supplies. The mask is a luxury or an unnecessary detail for many of them. Dying broke by a shell, an empty stomach or corona is kif-kif  ”, he concludes.

Our selection on the coronavirus

• Listen to our Coronavirus Info column 

• Our  explanations  :
→  What we know about the mode of contagion
→  Disparities and inequalities in the face of the coronavirus: what must be remembered
→  Triple therapy, Discovery… update on research
→  The race for the vaccine is in full swing
→  How to make a mask and use it well

• Our series  : "  The response, country by country  "

• After Covid-19, towards a new world?

• Each evening, find the State of the world and Africa facing the pandemic

• See also the files of RFI Savoirs on the Covid-19:
→  Birth of a pandemic
→  Everyday life put to the test
→  The history of epidemics
→  Science facing the Covid-19
→  The geopolitical consequences

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• Coronavirus: the response, country by country
• Syria
• Coronavirus
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