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Syria

Northwest Syria Joint Market Monitoring Initiative (JMMI) July 2023

Attachments

KEY MESSAGES

  • The TRY-USD exchange rate increased by 21% compared to a monthto-month increase of 6%, 4% and 2% over the past three months.

  • The SMEB total in TRY increased from 3,080 to 3,440 (+12%), mostly related to the ongoing currency depreciation.

  • Prices of most monitored items continued to rise in parallel with the ongoing currency depreciation of the Turkish Lira against the USD. The increasing prices are contributing to increasing humanitarian challenges in NWS where humanitarian aid is experiencing funding cuts and the cross-border resolution has not yet been renewed.

  • The prices of tomatoes and cucumbers continued to decline related to the ongoing harvest season of these vegetables. The prices of potatoes (+18%) and onions (+41%) increased for the first time in two months. Historical JMMI data shows that these vegetables typically undergo price increases in July related to the end of the harvest season for these vegetables.

ASSESSMENT OVERVIEW

To inform humanitarian cash programming, the Northwest of Syria (NWS) Cash Working Group (CWG), in partnership with local and international NGOs, conducts a monthly Joint Market Monitoring Initiative in Northern Syria. The exercise assesses the availability and prices of 36 basic commodities that are typically sold in markets and consumed by the average Syrian household, including food, water and non-food items e.g., fuel, and cell phone data. Of these, 18 items comprise the Survival Minimum Expenditure Basket (SMEB), which represents the minimum, culturally adjusted items required to support a 6-person household for a month.