From Isolation to Reintegration: How ISO Certification Can Reposition Syrian Companies Globally  

By: Roaa Obaid 

Syria is witnessing unprecedented regional and international business interest after 15 years of isolation. Yet foreign investors and trade partners still lack confidence in Syrian product quality, operational efficiency, management transparency, and anti-corruption oversight. To address this, obtaining accredited third-party certification under International Organization for Standardization (ISO) standards has become a strategic imperative for re-entering international markets.

Achieving credible certification requires navigating a multi-tiered international architecture. ISO is a network of 177 national standards bodies that develops voluntary standards to improve quality, safety, and efficiency in production, services, and management. Syria is represented in the ISO network through the Syrian Arab Organization for Standardization and Metrology (SASMO). While ISO develops the standards, national accreditation bodies vet independent certification bodies, which in turn conduct on-site audits and issue certificates.

Although voluntary and rarely a prerequisite to formal market entry, ISO certification accelerates market acceptance and reduces transaction costs by easing entry into unfamiliar markets and improving export efficiency. Achieving certification requires companies to systematically organize and document operational and production data. While this process demands time, internal training, and capital, it prepares firms for international partnerships by generating the verified documentation required during due diligence. 

However, Syrian firms face significant barriers to obtaining credible certification. The process requires standardized systems, internal restructuring, and rigorous documentation—an endeavor that is financially and administratively prohibitive for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which constitute 85% of businesses in Syria, according to official estimates. Compounding this challenge, Syria’s certification system was compromised even before the war. In 2011, SASMO reported that dozens of outside bodies were issuing quality certificates without its knowledge, with only about 500 of roughly 40,000 registered industrial establishments holding quality certificates. Today, as SASMO re-engages with ISO, it has mandated that certification bodies register locally, submit certificates for endorsement, and undergo regular inspections, with deregistration as a possible consequence of noncompliance.

To rebuild international trust in Syrian companies, policymakers should take two key steps. 

First, introduce phased compliance, beginning with basic standards and national quality marks, then advancing to industry-specific certifications. This would make certification financially manageable for SMEs, streamline training, and progressively build administrative capacity. 

Second, establish a public digital registry under SASMO to identify fraudulent certificates and make verification accessible to all, thereby helping to prevent false claims.