As part of its comprehensive administrative transformation plan, the Syrian government seeks to restructure the civil service through a new draft civil service law, which is one of the most prominent components of institutional reform in the country. This draft law is part of a serious attempt to address the structural imbalances plaguing public administration, which have accumulated due to decades of bureaucracy, excessive centralization, and an expanding civil service without corresponding productivity. The new law is also viewed as a strategic tool for redefining the relationship between the state and its employees, achieving a balance between rights and duties, and improving the quality of public services.
Analyzing this law requires a multidimensional approach that takes into account the political, economic, and social context in which it is proposed, as well as assessing its realism in light of the structural challenges facing the Syrian state in the post-conflict phase. This is what this study examines.
First: The Conceptual Background of Administrative Reform:
The civil service is the backbone of any effective government apparatus and reflects the state’s ability to manage its human resources efficiently and fairly.
In the Syrian context, public service has long been associated with concepts of political and social entitlement rather than merit and competence. This has led to the entrenchment of a career culture based on seniority, automatic appointments, and the absence of effective accountability, contributing to a de-motivating and low-productivity work environment.
Hence, the new draft civil service law seeks to break this administrative legacy by introducing modern concepts such as job descriptions, qualitative promotion, career paths, and periodic performance evaluations.
It also aims to enhance transparency and accountability through a mandatory code of conduct and clear grievance mechanisms that allow employees to object to unfair administrative decisions.
Second: The most prominent features of the new law:
The law includes a set of key elements that reflect clear reformist trends, most notably:
- Mechanisms for entry into public service: Competition is required through objective tests and criteria, ensuring equal opportunity and limiting favoritism.
- Human Resources Management: Promotion is based on performance and competence, not just seniority, with precise job descriptions and responsibilities.
- Work Environment: The law encourages the introduction of flexible work patterns, such as part-time and remote work, in line with global developments in the labor market.
- Accountability and Discipline: The law requires employees to adhere to a code of conduct and sets precise controls for disciplinary dismissal and transfer, while guaranteeing the right to grievance.
- Employment Rights: The law includes a performance-based incentive system, expands the scope of leave, including maternity and paternity leave, and enhances health coverage.
Third: The Economic and Social Dimension of Reform:
Civil service reform cannot be separated from the deteriorating economic reality facing Syria. The weak purchasing power of salaries and the lack of fair wage distribution are among the most prominent causes of deteriorating job performance and the migration of skilled workers to the private sector or abroad.
Hence, linking salaries to productivity and living conditions, as stated in the deliberations of the representatives of the Federation of Trade Unions on September 24, 2025, is a necessary step. However, it requires precise mechanisms for evaluating performance and identifying objective productivity indicators.
Converting temporary contracts to permanent contracts and expanding the umbrella of protection against arbitrary dismissal enhances job stability and motivates employees to be committed and innovative.
However, these measures, despite their importance, clash with a fragile financial reality and a general budget deficit, presenting the government with a difficult equation between reform ambition and the ability to implement it.
Fourth: Structural Challenges Facing Implementation:
Despite the ambitious nature of the law, its implementation faces a number of structural challenges, most notably:
- Institutional Resistance: Some administrative bodies, which benefited from the old system, may obstruct the implementation of the reforms, fearing the loss of privileges.
- Weak Digital Infrastructure: The absence of advanced information systems for human resources management limits the state’s ability to implement the concepts of electronic evaluation and smart promotion.
- Legal Environment: The law requires clear executive regulations, issued concurrently with its entry into force, to avoid legislative vacuums and ensure proper implementation.
- Union Independence: Involving union organizations in evaluating the performance of officials is a positive step, but it requires effective independence for unions, free from political subordination.
Conclusion:
To ensure the success of the law and achieve its objectives, a set of recommendations, as seen in the Syrian Future Movement, can be put forward:
- Issuing executive regulations in parallel with the law and training administrative personnel to implement them.
- Enhancing the independence of unions and activating their oversight role in evaluating job performance.
- Launching a unified digital platform for human resources management, enabling automated evaluation and reducing human intervention.
- Preparing a conceptual appendix to the law, clarifying new terminology and preventing ambiguity in implementation.
- Linking incentives to actual performance, rather than formal indicators, to ensure fairness and stimulate innovation.
The new draft civil service law in Syria is a bold step toward reforming the administrative apparatus and rebuilding trust between citizens and the state.
However, its success depends not only on its legal formulation, but also on political will, institutional readiness, and the ability to overcome structural challenges.
Under the current circumstances, this law could represent a turning point if it is addressed as part of a comprehensive reform vision, rather than merely a technical measure.
References:
- Syria TV website – “Salary Reform and Government Performance Evaluation… Workers’ Representatives Discuss the Public Service Law”
https://www.syria.tv/إصلاح-الراتب-وقيم-أداء-الحكومة-ممثلو-العمال-ينقاشون-قانون-الخدم-العامة - Syrian Ministry of Administrative Development – Documents of the Draft Civil Service Law (2023)
- United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) – Reform Reports
