President Al-Assad takes part in the dialogue sessions of the 1st Conference of the Social Solidarity and Development Fund

President Bashar Al-Assad on Saturday took part in the dialogue sessions held within the framework of the 1st Conference of the Social Solidarity and Development Fund”, which kicked off on Saturday in Damascus under the slogan “Activating the Role of Youth in Development Work”.

University students, graduates as well as industrialists, economists and producers in addition to persons who benefitted from the fund and succeeded in achieving financial independence took part in the conference.

President Al-Assad  talked to the participants about the recommendations of this conference, including enhancing the fund’s performance, its work in the coming stage to which it is getting ready to move a year after it was launched, means to reach more beneficiaries from different parts of the country, putting a framework for the fund’s future relation with other banks and how to benefit from Law No. 8 concerning Micro-financing banks.

“The Social Solidarity and Development Fund is an idea that is still under test. It can be developed, particularly when this experience helps us form a clearer image to precisely identify what we need from this fund and what its objectives are,” President Al-Assad said.

“Ideas are always there, but good organization and the arrangement of priorities make them more realistic,” President Al-Assad added, stressing that small and medium-sized enterprises are the main pillars of economy.    

  A wider dialogue was held between President Al-Assad and participants during which the president was briefed on the problems and the challenges that are facing the Syrian youths in general, impeding their production, affecting their ability to work or complete their academic achievement and in many cases pushing them to immigration. The president Also listened to the participants’ suggestions and ideas on the social, economic and living conditions in Syria.

President Al-Assad affirmed that his main reason for attending this conference is the importance and effectiveness of this dialogue in finding solutions to many problems and obstacles.

It is to be noted that the Social Solidarity and Development Fund was established in August 2021 with the aim of enhancing youths’ abilities to launch their projects and creating suitable environment to apply their ideas on the ground.

The Fund has so far succeeded in launching tens of solo and collective production projects in different parts of the country.

Hamda Mustafa