The amount of money being donated for reconstruction in Syria is nothing short of miraculous. In fact, the crowdfunding campaigns underway there since mid-August may well be some of the most successful in the world.

For example, in 2024, during her ill-fated run at the presidency, former US Vice President Kamala Harris managed to raise $47 million (€40.3 million) in just 24 hours from donors. But the northern Syrian area of Idlib, which started crowdfunding for reconstruction in late September, was able to raise around $208 million (€178 million) in about the same time.

Since mid-summer, there have been at least 10 different crowdfunding campaigns launched in different towns and districts of Syria. 

Total amounts raised in each area are reported in local media, but are difficult to verify independently because of the different forms donations appear to be taking. The smallest sum was reported in Kafr Rumah, a town in the Idlib countryside — campaign organizers say they received pledges of over $150,000. The largest amount raised was the more than $200 million in Idlib province.

According to all the media reports seen by DW, the total amount of money raised by different Syrian crowdfunding campaigns comes close to $500 million altogether.

The fundraising campaigns have been met with celebration, pride and plenty of media fanfare. For many Syrians, it's a feel-good moment as their country, ravaged by over a decade of civil war, struggles to rebuild.

"These campaigns were launched based on the principle of solidarity and cooperation among Syrians," explained Fadel al-Akl, a member of the Idlib fundraising campaign's organizing committee. "There is no infrastructure, no schools, no medical facilities, not even water [pumping] stations. So the first stage is to restore life to these destroyed villages and towns," he told DW, outlining what the money would be used for.

For 'all people, rich and poor'

"We've seen that all people, rich and poor, have participated," said al-Akl.

This is confirmed by the Idlib campaign where one group of volunteers has listed donors online (only a few of the campaigns have done this). Their website shows over $350,000 worth of pledges from more than 3,800 people, with sums donated running from just $4 to gifts of $5,000 and more.

"As a citizen, I wanted to contribute to this campaign for all my Syrian brothers and sisters after years of war," Mustafa al-Farra, a Syrian businessman from Maarat al-Numan, in southern Idlib, explained why he'd donated $250,000. "May Syria return to its former glory — and even better — after reconstruction."

The biggest donor to the Idlib campaign was Ghassan Aboud, a Syrian billionaire based in the United Arab Emirates, formerly considered an enemy of the Assad regime. He donated $55 million.

Campaigns questioned over transparency, funds' origin

But not everyone has been so enthusiastic. And as the campaigns have continued collecting millions, observers have become increasingly skeptical.

Earlier in October, Haid Haid, a Syrian researcher at British think tank Chatham House, wrote about how the wealthy Hamsho family, known for nefarious business ties to ousted Syrian dictator Bashar Assad, had donated several million to two campaigns.

"The uproar [about their donations] has reignited debate over the transitional government's opaque handling of Assad-era cronies," Haid wrote in UK-based magazine Al Majalla. 

One of the most recent campaigns was meant to raise funds for the southern area of Sweida. But the area is troubled, with relations between members of Sweida's Druze-minority and pro-government forces tense there and violence, extrajudicial killings and kidnappings reported.

That campaign was not acceptable to many people in the region, Salman al-Shawfi, a Sweida farmer, told DW. "They held the campaign [launch] in a place designated for mourning, set off fireworks and collected donations to restore villages whose inhabitants have been displaced. A number of them [the inhabitants of those villages] were killed during [recent violence]," he complained. "This campaign is empty of substance."

Critics of the campaigns have also suggested that some of the larger donations to the crowdfunding campaigns — especially those worth millions of dollars which increase the totals so impressively in such a short period of time — are actually projects already planned and budgeted for.

The so-called "donations" from various government ministries are just their annual budget for the city or district, they allege."These are not new funds, this is just about image polishing for the new government," one commentator complained on social media. 

For example, local media reported that among the largest donors to fundraising in Idlib was the United Nations Development Program, or UNDP, which apparently donated $14 million, and the Syrian American Medical Society, or SAMS, which donated $11 million. 

There's likely some confusion there. Abdulfatah Elshaar, chair of the SAMS board, clarified that the $11 million is not a cash donation. It's for several different projects, including a specialty hospital and oncology center, that SAMS is working on in Syria.

"There are also other ongoing projects involved in that sum too," he told DW. "We obviously didn't make the decision to implement those new projects on that day [of the fundraiser] but we did announce it that day."

A spokesperson from the UNDP gave a similar explanation. "The amount mentioned refers to funds that UNDP has allocated for new development and recovery projects in Idlib, as part of our broader, nationwide effort," they told DW. The UNDP also announced the Idlib projects at the same time as the crowdfunding campaign.

And the UNDP broadly supports such campaigns, the spokesperson added. Initiatives like these "are meaningful steps toward supporting Syrians and restoring a sense of normality across the country," they said.

How is money being spent?

Observers have also asked questions about transparency and exactly how donations will be collected and spent.

Asked about this by Syrian media outlet Enab Baladi, fundraising organizers promised to publish lists showing who had donated and what the money had been spent on. Other campaigners said it was a matter of social pride — those who had pledged would donate the money for fear of looking bad in the community if they didn't, and organizers would spend the funds transparently for the same reason.

In Idlib, Fadel al-Akl told DW that around a fifth of the money was being given in cash. A further 40% came in the form of pre-planned projects and the rest of the money was coming via bank accounts.

"Some people don't have cash on hand and are trying to convert assets into cash," he explained. "We appreciate that and take it in good faith that they will pay what they publicly pledged."

But no matter how much money comes in, or which sums are part of pre-planned projects or budgets, one thing is clear: Crowdfunding won't cover the full costs of Syrian reconstruction. In a report published this week, the World Bank estimated these at around $216 billion.

This story was amended on October 23, 2025, in order to add comments received from the UNDP after publication. 

Edited by: Martin Kuebler