LocationsOnce rubble is removed, life begins to return
Clearing the way for Syria's recovery
July 22, 2026
Clearing debris requires equipment, planning, coordination and sustained support.
Photo: UNDP Syria/Giles Clarke
Standing in the middle of a neighbourhood in Rural Damascus, it was hard to imagine what daily life here once looked like. Streets were blocked by rubble. Buildings had collapsed. Shops were shuttered. Even moving from one street to another was difficult.
The conflict in Syria claimed hundreds of thousands of lives, triggered one of the largest displacement crises in modern history and damaged infrastructure and buildings estimated at US$108 billion. Tens of millions of tonnes of debris remain, much of it contaminated with explosive ordnance.
During my recent trip to visit projects supported through the REVIVE partnership with the Republic of Korea, one thing became clear: until rubble is removed, life cannot fully restart.
When debris blocks daily life
Piles of broken concrete and twisted metal block almost everything. Roads remain closed. Water and sewage networks cannot be repaired. Power and essential services struggle to return. Entire communities stay disconnected.
But once even small sections are cleared, the change is immediate. Movement resumes. Access returns. Families begin coming home.
“When the roads began to clear, people started to come back,” said Mohamad Miftah, UNDP Area Manager covering Rural Damascus.
Through the REVIVE project, UNDP and partners are helping communities take those first steps forward.
The project is clearing 570,000 tonnes of debris across Aleppo, Deir-ez-Zor, Homs and Rural Damascus, while rehabilitating roads, water and sewage networks, providing explosive ordnance risk education and supporting debris recycling initiatives that turn rubble into construction materials.
More than 15,000m3 of debris have been recycled, producing over 123,000 construction items reconnecting 10km of roads and creating safer access to homes and public spaces.
Debris removal helps families cover food, medicine and school expenses while contributing directly to improving their communities.
Photo: UNDP Syria/Giles Clarke
The people making it possible
What stood out most to me was not only the scale of the work, but the determination of communities themselves. Behind every reopened road are people organizing, clearing and rebuilding, often in difficult conditions.
“Once the road was cleared, people started removing debris from their homes with their bare hands,” said Ali Abdullah, UNDP Area Manager in Deir-ez-Zor.
Recovery is also creating opportunities for people to contribute directly to rebuilding their communities. Across the four governorates, more than 1,300 people have participated in cash-for-work activities linked to debris removal, helping support over 6,000 family members.
At the same time, local teams are being trained to identify explosive hazards and carry out risk awareness activities, helping communities recover more safely.
More than a job
This work also provides something many families urgently need: a source of income.
In places where jobs remain scarce, debris removal helps families cover food, medicine and school expenses while contributing directly to improving their communities.
“Before the project, I had no income to support my family. Now I can provide food and medicine for my children, niece and nephew, and they can go to school,” said a woman working at a REVIVE-supported debris recycling facility in Aleppo.
The REVIVE project shows what becomes possible when international support helps communities take the first steps forward together.
Photo: UNDP Syria/Giles Clarke
Debris recycling is also helping transform destruction into something useful again. Recycled rubble is being converted into construction materials such as blocks, tiles and curb stones that can support rehabilitation efforts locally.
Beyond the income, there is also pride in helping restore a neighbourhood. In reopening a street. In seeing visible progress where so much has been disrupted.
“Once the debris was cleared, community members volunteered to rebuild a park and streetlights. Today, children and women enjoy this space after school, without fear, in peace,” said a community volunteer in Aleppo.
The first step toward rebuilding
Across the communities I visited, the pattern was consistent: once rubble is removed, life begins to return.
The scale of destruction across Syria remains immense. Communities are driving these efforts, yet they cannot do it alone. Clearing debris requires equipment, planning, coordination and sustained support.
The REVIVE project shows what becomes possible when international support helps communities take the first steps forward together.
In Syria, clearing debris is not only about removing what was destroyed. It is about reopening roads, reconnecting services, supporting livelihoods and helping communities regain a sense of normal life again.
And at the centre of it are the people of Syria.
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