Syria ECD in Crisis Financing Analysis Report (English and Arabic)

Syria faces one of the world’s most acute early childhood development (ECD) crises, where a large and growing population of young children is confronted with the collapse of essential systems for health, nutrition, protection and learning. Despite nominal increases, public spending has sharply eroded in real terms, with combined social sector budgets now representing a small share of total expenditure, while humanitarian needs have surged and funding coverage has declined dramatically. This has left critical ECD services under-resourced, with widespread gaps in access, staffing and infrastructure, particularly for displaced and vulnerable populations.

Across both public and humanitarian financing, this report find that a central challenge remains the “financial invisibility” of ECD, with no clear budget lines or tracking mechanisms to ensure accountability or equitable allocation. While needs continue to outstrip available resources, targeted reforms, such as introducing ECD budget tagging, expanding sector allocations, and scaling proven delivery models, offer a pathway to improve financing efficiency, strengthen systems, and better protect Syria’s youngest children during and beyond the crisis.