Proposal for New Administrative Capital

A widely-circulated opinion article last week suggested creating a new capital for Syria to save Damascus from growing problems with pollution and congestion.



The May 11 article published in the pro-government weekly Al-Qandil recommended establishing a new administrative capital, to which all ministries and official offices of the government could relocate, leaving Damascus as the political capital only.



The article noted that this has been done in other countries.



Damascus, which is home to all official buildings, is overcrowded because thousands of people commute there for administrative work every day, argued the author of the article, Waddah Saeb, who works as an engineer.



The article, which was posted on several other websites, said Damascus was suffering from many “unsolvable” problems, including a real-estate crisis and pressure on the city’s water infrastructure.



He noted that schools and hospitals in the capital were overcrowded, adding that the levels of pollution, traffic and noise will get worse in the next ten years.



The author outlined a series of procedures to fund the relocation of the capital, which, he reckoned, would half the number of Damascus’s residents.



He said that such a plan would allow Damascus to regain its reputation as the “city of Jasmine” and to develop into a cleaner, more organised place in future.