The ‘75 percent Ownership Requirement’ Hinders Post-Earthquake Aid

The National Fund for Earthquake Victims, in its meeting on October 15, reiterated that at least 75 percent of the owners of any building destroyed by the February 6, 2023 earthquake and its aftershocks must request support as a condition for compensation payments, as well as to obtain a building permit for reconstruction.

Although no official clarification was provided, it is likely that the 75 percent ownership requirement mainly affects multi-story buildings with multiple owners. The inability to meet this threshold – that is, that 75 percent of the owners of a building apply for this aid – prevents other co-owners in the collapsed building from receiving support, as compensation for multi-owner buildings is not issued individually but collectively, tied to the issuance of a building permit for the entire structure. For example, a building with three owners requires all of them to apply for support; for four owners, at least three must apply, and so on.

The National Fund for Earthquake Victims was established by Legislative Decree No. 7 of 2023 to provide financial aid and assist those affected in overcoming physical, material, or emotional damages. The fund is part of the national “Human First” response plan for earthquake aftermath and has a three-year operational period, during which the fund’s management is required to distribute incoming resources to those eligible for support.

According to its operating guidelines, the fund’s aid programme includes compensation for owners of buildings that collapsed during the earthquake on February 6 or in the aftershock on February 20, divided into three categories. The first category (A) applies to destroyed properties within licensed buildings in zoned areas, where owners receive SYP 160 million to rebuild. The second (B) applies to unlicensed properties and buildings, allowing owners to apply for housing in government-funded projects for eligible earthquake victims constructed by the General Housing Establishment (GHE). These beneficiaries receive SYP 40 million in financial aid directly from the fund, with the option to secure a loan from the Real Estate Bank for the remaining value of the housing unit. The third category (C) covers owners of properties that were destroyed post-earthquake, or slated for demolition by governorate orders due to structural safety issues and lack of repair feasibility.

The 75 percent ownership requirement applies directly to licensed buildings in zoned areas, which fall under category A only. There are 841 affected residential units within category A; but figures on the number of affected individuals and buildings are unavailable. Official newspapers have not published detailed statistics on damages, often combining information about buildings, residential units, owners, and victims, possibly to attract additional aid.

The October 15 meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Mohammed Al-Jalali, who also heads the National Fund’s Board, included the ministers of local administration and environment, finance, public works and housing, and other board members. The board makes decisions by a majority of half plus one of its ten members; in the event of a tie, the side that the board’s chair (Prime Minister) votes with prevails. The board convenes at the chair’s request or as needed, without set meeting dates.

The board maintained this requirement, even though participants in the board’s meetings, when reviewing reasons why some affected owners had not received fund compensation, understood the primary issue to be the failure to reach 75 percent applicant representation among building owners. The board, as reported in the official press, did not discuss the reasons why some buildings had not met the 75 percent application threshold. However, it defended the requirement on the grounds of “protecting owners’ rights.”

Experts suggested several reasons for failing to meet the 75 percent requirement: some buildings have been inherited collectively by heirs of earthquake victims, necessitating legal inheritance procedures to identify heirs and determine their entitlements. Other properties remain collectively owned by multiple individuals, requiring the termination of shared ownership either by mutual agreement or through court proceedings. Some of these heirs or co-owners are absent, out of Syria, or wanted by the security apparatus, preventing them from authorizing relatives to undertake these steps.