Arada and Syrian Sovereign Fund partner for $7bn New Damascus project

Arada Group and the state-owned Syrian Sovereign Fund have formed a joint venture to develop ‘New Damascus,’ a major integrated city on a 4 million square meter site west of the capital. The project has an estimated Gross Development Value of US $7 billion and is expected to include 11,000 homes, such as villas, townhouses, and apartments, alongside a 700,000 square meter public park.

This partnership marks one of the first significant foreign real estate expansions into Syria by a UAE-based developer. Arada Group and the Syrian Sovereign Fund are also exploring additional development sites across the country to align with national reconstruction goals.

Separately, Syria’s free zones are seeing increased economic activity, with 800 investment contracts signed to date. Officials expect the number of investors to exceed 1,000 by the end of 2026. The Adra free zone north of Damascus has reached over 80 percent occupancy, with industrial activities including food production, gold manufacturing, and vehicle parts trading.