Restoration of textile factories underway in Syria’s Aleppo

Textile factories in war-torn Aleppo are being restored, following the Syrian government’s recapture of the city from opposition forces in December 2016.

Aleppo was an important industrial city in Syria, known for its thriving textile industry. However, more than 1 300 local textile factories were destroyed and billions of dollars were lost due to the war.

Due to power shortages and other problems, only 565 factories in the city have been temporarily restored since the city was recaptured, less than half the number before the war.

At a gauze factory, holes can be seen on the walls. A dozen looms and spinning machines are working in a dim light.

In such a tough environment, Saeed Kngo, a worker at the gauze factory, is striving to restart production after the city’s recapture.

“Many of the machines were destroyed and many were stolen. We bought cotton thread, put it on the existing machines and found it was still working, so we restarted our business,” said Kngo.

Workers can overcome working in damaged buildings, but they cannot do anything about the power outages.

As the electricity shortages in Aleppo have worsened since the start of winter, with many factories facing threats of shutting down.

“Before the war, we had day shift and night shift. Now, we only have day shift. And we have less hours due to electricity shortages. We only have electricity daytime and we don’t have that at night,” said Kngo.

Kngo said that the margins of the factory are barely enough for him and a few other workers to support their families.

However, Kngo feels that as long as the machines keep running, they will reach full capacity and the future of the textile industry will be bright.