Researchers analysed hundreds of UN contracts to procure goods and services for people living in government-held areas of Syria, where more than 90% of the population are living in poverty since the Syrian pound, or lira, crashed last year.
While the central bank’s official exchange rate is now SYP2,500 to the US dollar, the black market rate is SYP3,500. Legitimate traders and consumers prefer to use the black market rate, as they receive more Syrian pounds for foreign currency.
Since the UN is forced by the Syrian government to use the official rate, half of foreign aid money exchanged into Syrian pounds in 2020 was lost after being exchanged at the lower, official rate.
Er, no. In normal FX market parlance that’s a higher rate. Fewer lbs per $ is a higher rate for the lb.
One of those English language oddities. By paying my creditors I pay my debts. Yerworrr????
Of course I don’t think we should waste any money at all on Syria. Or Afghanistan.
Must admit the thing I find most amusing about the scream to lavish cash on the Taliban is that one ‘concession’ that is always demanded is that the Talibs MUST allow those Afghans who wish to leave to do so.
Why they should have any hesitation at all in dumping their opponents on the wicked white West is something I’ve never understood. After all, some of the funds they lay their hands on will be sent to Afghanistan. Some percentage of the ‘asylum seekers’ will rape and stab for the glory of Islam. Most will vote for policies giving them even more money. And they’ll spend their time annoying the inhabitants of their new home rather than the Taliban.
Don’t specify your donations in local ickies, do so in dollars. You can base you dollar donation on the black rate, or any other rate you want.
It’s a common failing of journalists. See it all the time in currency. The pound is described as “down”. Then they quote the dollar in pounds but the pound in euros. So one figure will have fallen whilst the other has risen. I can only presume it’s where they source the data. One looks at it from the opposite perspective to the other. And they all choose the same source & none of them can cope with simple arithmetic. But arts grads. Is there actually enough rope in the world? Or enough suitable trees?
Grauniad and simple arithmetic!
1000 9the amount forfeited by using official instead of black market rate) is two-sevenths of 3,500, not half of it.