In 1800, the region of present-day Syria had a population of approximately 1.25 million people. Growth was relatively slow during the 19th century, and the population reached just over two million by the time of the First World War in 1914. However, population would begin to grow more rapidly following the beginning of French occupation in 1920, and by the time Syria achieved independence from France in 1946, the population would be just over 3.2 million. Following the country’s independence, Syria would begin experiencing exponential growth, the result of significant economic growth from the country’s growing petroleum exports.

However, the 21st century would see a sharp reversal of Syria’s exponential population growth, with the beginning of the Syrian Civil War after widespread anti-government protests in 2011. After peaking at 21.4 million people in 2010, Syria’s population would see a rapid decline during the civil war, as widespread conflict, massacres, and destruction would lead to significant fatalities and a mass exodus of refugees from the country, with several million migrating to neighboring Turkey, Lebanon, and Jordan, and another several hundred thousand ultimately migrating to the European Union. As a result, the population of the country has declined greatly, falling from over 21 million in 2010 to just under 17 million by 2018. However, as the fighting has gradually decreased in intensity and refugee rates have levelled off, the population of Syria has slowly began to grow again. In 2020, Syria is estimated to have a population of 17.5 million people.

This statistic shows the total population of Syria from 2000 to 2010. In 2010, the total population of Syria was at approximately 21.4 million inhabitants.

The Syrian refugee crisis

The war in Syria has been escalating since 2011, which has made it difficult to estimate the current population of the country. The population of the country was last determined to be over 21 million in 2010. Previously, population growth rates had been relatively high, but since the war, Syria has been experiencing the opposite, and now claims the highest rate of population decline in the world.

Large numbers of Syrians have been fleeing the county and others have lost their lives due to the conflict within the country’s borders. As of October 2015, the total number of casualties had risen to over 250,000 - including around 116,000 civilians and about 13,000 children. This has caused more than 4 million people to flee the country, making it the worst refugee crisis of our generation. Still, millions more have also been internally displaced and the sheer scale of the crisis is evident.

Neighboring counties have received large numbers of Syrian refugees, but the crisis is now being felt across Europe as thousands of refugees are risking their lives everyday migrating to Europe in search of a brighter future. European cooperation is needed and not all countries are meeting Europe’s migrant quota.

This statistic shows the age structure in Syria from 2013 to 2023. In 2023, about 30.34 percent of Syria's total population were aged 0 to 14 years. The shrinking population of Syria In the past, Syria’s population has been one of the fastest growing populations around the world. While the fertility rate is much lower now than it has been, in 2013, World Bank figures show a fertility rate of 3 children per woman. This rate is still relatively high, but the country’s historically expanding population has left the country with a large cohort of young people: Almost 40 percent of the Syrian population is under 14 years of age, with close to 60 percent of the population aged 15 to 64. This leaves around a meager 4 percent of Syrians who are over 65 years old. At present, the median age of the population is estimated to be around 23 years, which means half the population is under 23, leaving large numbers of young people at the mercy of the war that has plagued the country. As of October 2015, 12,517 children were reportedly killed in the fighting, with the number of unreported cases being presumably much higher than this. This dire situation has caused many people to flee the country and it is no surprise that the majority of them are young. Despite a high fertility rate, this mass emigration has significantly stalled population growth in the country, a trend which is expected to continue especially as an overwhelming majority of Syrians – 46 percent - stated they would leave the country if given the opportunity.

UNICEF's country profile for Syrian Arab Republic, including under-five mortality rates, child health, education and sanitation data.

This statistic shows the biggest cities in Syria by number of inhabitants before the start of the civil war. In 2004, when these figures were reported, approximately 4.8 million people lived in Aleppo, making it the biggest city in Syria.

The aim of the survey is to examine perceptions and attitudes towards security sector reform in Syria. It is about how Syrians imagine an ideal security sector, or a reform process to that effect, for their country in order to regain confidence in state security provision. The population is made up of Syrians between the ages of 15-45 who currently live in Germany. The selection was made by a snowball or availability sample. The questionnaire consists of 5 parts, includes 63 questions in High Arabic (Modern Standard Arabic) and is online-based (CAWI).

Topics: Basic understanding of security sector reform (query of 5 central termini: rule of law, human rights, civilian oversight, good governance and security sector reform).

Experiences of insecurity and injustice in Syria before and during the war: personal definition of security; sense of security in different places in Syria before and during the war; experience of insecurity and injustice: most frequent and serious types of insecurity and injustice before and during the war in Syria (e.g. domestic violence by family members or spouses, etc.); personal experience (resp. experience of a person close to the respondent ) of different types of insecurity and injustice; assessment of the extent of repression and violence in the place of residence, in the governorate and in the country before the war in Syria and during the war by state security forces and non-state armed groups; most responsible institutions for repression and violence before the war in Syria and during the war.

General assessment of state security institutions (army, police and intelligence agencies): before the Syrian war a distinction was possible between the major security providers; knowledge of various processes, institutions, roles and responsibilities in the Syrian Arab Republic; agreement to statements regarding the security providers before the war in Syria: responded to the needs of the Syrian people, provided high quality services to citizens, well trained and equipped, applied the law equally and fairly to all citizens, overlapping of roles and responsibilities; deficits of the state security providers before the war in Syria (e.g. widespread corruption); assessment of the Syrian justice system before the war in Syria with regard to the protection of all citizens from human rights abuses and equal treatment of all citizens before the law.

Ideas of an ideal security sector for Syria: most important characteristics of a functioning security sector; need for security sector reform after the end of the war in Syria; after the end of the war in Syria, the security sector needs to be built from scratch; all security forces need to be dismantled; all militias need to hand over their weapons; importance of various entities (e.g. president) in leading a future security sector reform process in Syria; government as a contact in an ideal world in future personal danger situations; reasons for this attitude (e.g. responsibility of the state for the security of citizens); reasons why the respondent would not turn to the state in personal danger situations; preferred alternative contact persons in personal danger situations; demands for post-war Syria: Security providers should respond to the needs of all citizens; police should be the responsible entity to provide security for citizens; importance of equal participation of men and women in security forces; acceptance of a professional activity of one´s own daughter in the security forces; intelligence agencies play a crucial role for the security of the state; security officials that commit crimes against citizens should be brought to court; the death penalty should be abolished; countries or institutions that should be asked for support for rebuilding the country as well as for rebuilding the security sector; in post-war Syria, decisions affecting the security of citizens should be taken in the governorates and not in the capital; in post-war Syria, security providers should be put under civilian oversight; preferred institution(s) to be in charge of oversight; preferences for the future Minister of Defence and Minister of the Interior in post-war Syria; in post-war Syria, there should be specific security providers only serving the protection of the president; conditions for the return to Syria (e.g. democratically elected president).

Demography: sex; age (year of birth); religion; last place of residence in Syria (governorate of); place o...

Key information about Syria Monthly Earnings

• Syria Monthly Earnings stood at 81 USD in Dec 2020, compared with the previous figure of 143 USD in Dec 2019
• Syria Monthly Earnings data is updated yearly, available from Dec 1993 to Dec 2020, with an average number of 198 USD
• The data reached the an all-time high of 539 USD in Dec 2011 and a record low of 81 USD in Dec 2020

CEIC calculates Monthly Earnings from annual Wages and annual Employment and converts it into USD. The Central Bureau of Statistics provides Wages in local currency and Employment. The Central Bank of Syria average market exchange rate is used for currency conversions. Monthly Earnings cover Public Industrial sector wages only.


Further information about Syria Monthly Earnings

• In the latest reports, Syria Population reached 28 million people in Dec 2022
• Unemployment Rate of Syria increased to 22 % in Dec 2021
• The country's Labour Force Participation Rate increased to 39 % in Dec 2023

In 2024, Turkey was the country that hosted the highest amount of Syrian refugees, amounting up to 3.1 million refugees. Lebanon was second, hosting 775,000 Syrian refugees. The data refers to the total number of Syrian refugees in a given country, not considering the date of their application for asylum or the date of their flight.

In 1950, the infant mortality rate of Syria was approximately two hundred deaths per thousand births, meaning that approximately one in five children born at this time would not survive past their first birthday. Infant mortality would decline rapidly in Syria in the second half of the 20th century, as rapid modernization fuelled by growing oil exports would allow for a significant expansion in access to healthcare and improved access to nutrition in the country. As a result, infant mortality would fall to just 21 deaths per thousand children by the turn of the century, roughly a tenth of the rate just fifty years earlier. However, infant mortality would increase in 2015, as the outbreak of the Syrian Civil War in 2011 would lead to mass displacement of the country’s population, and the destruction and disruption of much of the country’s healthcare services. However, as the conflict has decreased in intensity, the infant mortality rate of Syria has begun to decline once more, and in 2020, it is estimated that the infant mortality rate is now 16 deaths per thousand live births.

Worldwide, the Kutupalong Expansion Site in Bangladesh was the largest refugee camp, hosting nearly *********** refugees. Most of its refugee population is Rohingya, who have fled from neighboring Myanmar after years of persecution and a genocide that started in 2016. Violent conflicts in East Africa Some of the largest refugee camps in the world are located in East Africa. This is no surprise as violent conflicts in Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, Ethiopia, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo have forced millions to flee their countries. Many refugees do not end up in refugee camps, but are forced to reside on the outskirts of towns, while others take the dangerous route towards Europe or North America. Africa is also the continent in the world with the second highest number of registered refugees, behind Europe, including Turkey. Increasing number of refugees After being relatively stable through the 2000s, the number of refugees in the world has increased since 2012. This is strongly connected to the outbreak of the Syrian civil war, and as a result, the highest number of refugees in the world is from Syria. Moreover, the Russia-Ukraine war since February 2022, the Taliban retaking power in Afghanistan in 2021, and the civil war in Sudan have increased the global refugee count.

The total population in the Middle East and Africa region was approximately *** million in 2018. It was expected to increase to *** million in 2030, and almost double by 2050 to reach about *** million. Demographics The Middle East and Africa region includes ** countries, which is approximately of six percent of the population of the world. The population is characterized with an above average fertility rate of ***, compared to the global fertility rate of ****. Due to the decrease in death rates due to the introduction of modern medicine, combined with the steady birth rates, the population of the MENA region is expected to continue growing in the future. Population growth might cause governmental burden in the future as governments try to decrease poverty rates, provide healthcare, and education to the larger number of people. The Arab spring In 2011, a series of demonstrations spread across many Arab countries to overthrow oppressive governments and dictators. It initiated from Tunisia, and spread to other countries including Egypt, Yemen, Bahrain, and Syria. The instability caused by the Arab spring affected international oil supply and prices, as the MENA region owns ** percent of the world’s oil reserves and ** percent of its natural gas reserves which makes it an important global economic stability factor. Some countries succeeded in overthrowing their oppressive governments, while other protests resulted in social violence and civil wars. The instability forced ** million people to seek refuge in neighboring countries. It was declared as the worst refugee crisis after World War II.

The majority of immigrants moving to Sweden in 2023 were Swedes returning to Sweden. Nearly 10,600 Swedes returned to their home country in 2023. The remaining top five countries of origin were India, Poland, Germany, and Syria. In total, 95,000 people immigrated to Sweden in 2023.

Syrians largest immigrant group

Of Sweden's foreign-born population, Syrians made up the largest group. Following the outbreak of the Syrian Civil War in 2011, many people left the country in search of a better life in Europe, some of which landed in Sweden. In 2022, Sweden hosted the world's 7th largest group of Syrian refugees.

Immigration drives population increase in Sweden

Over the past decade, Sweden has seen a positive migration rate, with more people immigrating to the country than people leaving. This is one of the main reasons why the country's population has been increasing steadily over recent years.

Since the 1950s, the number of forcibly displaced persons recognized by the United Nations has increased drastically; from around 2.1 million international refugees in 1951 to almost 123 million displaced persons in total in 2023. Annual figures are not reflective of the actual number of forcibly displaced people in the world, but rather the number of people identified as such by the UN. Preliminary figures for 2024 show that this figure may now reach the 125 million mark, with major new crises in Sudan and Palestine sending this figure higher, after the Russia-Ukraine War pushed this figure past 100 million people for the first time in 2022. UNHCR The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) was founded in 1950 to deal with the large number of displaced persons in Europe in the aftermath of the Second World War. Since then, the scale and geographical scope of its operations has broadened significantly, as it works to provide humanitarian aid, logistical support, and long-term solutions to crises across the globe. The UNHCR played an instrumental role in facilitating or limiting the impact of many decolonization movements across Africa and Asia in the late 20th century, and, in recent decades, it has provided much-needed assistance in conflict areas, such as the Balkans in the 1990s, Afghanistan since the 2000s, and more recently in Syria and Yemen. Alongside the UNHCR, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) was established in 1949 to provide similar assistance programs for Palestinian refugees and their descendants, and it is currently operational in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and the State of Palestine, but its future remains uncertain after the Israeli parliament revoked its license to operate in the country in October 2024. Long-term crises Persistent instability in Sub-Saharan Africa has also been a major area of focus throughout the UNHCR's history, as economic and structural underdevelopment, alongside conflict and political instability, has created several refugee crises that are now in their fourth decade. While countries such as Colombia, Germany, and Turkey have, to varying degrees, successfully managed refugee crises in recent years, the economies of most countries in Sub-Saharan Africa are not equipped to do so. Displacement has placed a great strain on several regions' already-struggling resources, and these are now also being affected by climate change. Countries such as Kenya, Sudan, and Uganda are home to camps or camp networks that house several hundred thousand refugees, with some of the largest in Kenya being established in the early 1990s.