A procession of great civilisations

With both Damascus and Aleppo laying reasonable claim to be the worlds oldest continually inhabited city, Syria has history by the bucket full. Today you can find evidence of many great civilisations throughout the country - from the Romans, the Byzantines, the Persians, the Ottomans to the Greeks. After falling to the French in 1921 Syria gained its independence in 1944. From then until the late 60s there was great upheaval including wars with Israel. In 1970 Hafez al Assad assumed control and his son Bashar is president today.

Agriculture, industry and energy

Syria's economy is driven primarily by agriculture, industry and energy. From a highly nationalised economy in the 1960s Syria is slowly reforming its economy. Private banking only became legal in 2001. The government is now promoting agriculture over industry to increase exports, achieve food self-sufficiency and stem rural migration. Oil however is still its major export and income from tourism is rising steadily. The government spends 7% of GDP on the military compared with only 2% on healthcare.