About SAG
The Syria Advisory Group is an independent research and advisory organisation focused exclusively on Syria's reconstruction. We publish The Syrian Reconstruction Monitor, advise government ministries pro-bono, and support investors entering the market.
Our mission and independence
Syria's reconstruction requires analysis that is quantitative, independent, and free — not locked behind a paywall or shaped by a commercial mandate.
The Syria Advisory Group was founded to provide exactly that. The Syrian Reconstruction Monitor is our public research record: sector-level data, legislative analysis, and primary interviews with policymakers, freely available to anyone on Substack at syrianmonitor.com.
Our government consulting is pro-bono by design. We have no financial interest in Syria, represent no government, and carry no conflicting mandates. The same analysis we publish openly in The Monitor underpins every advisory engagement we accept — whether for a ministry or an investor.
We are not a think tank. We are not a consulting firm. We are a small, independent group with a specific focus: rigorous, operationally useful research on Syria's reconstruction, applied directly through government and investor engagement.
What We Do
The Syrian Reconstruction Monitor
Free, quantitative, sector-level analysis published on Substack at syrianmonitor.com. Sector data, legislative tracking, policymaker interviews. No paywall.
Government Consulting
Pro-bono advisory to Syrian government ministries on service delivery, policy design, and institutional capacity. Strictly non-commercial.
Investor Advisory
Risk advisory, counterpart sourcing, and investment framework navigation for investors entering Syria. Grounded in Monitor-quality research.
The Team
Founder
Founder, Syria Advisory Group
Haddon founded the Syria Advisory Group to address what he saw as a persistent gap in Syria research: the absence of freely available, rigorous, quantitative analysis oriented toward the reconstruction challenge.
He has previously supported research at the International Crisis Group, UN Migration, and International IDEA, where he developed deep expertise in conflict-affected governance, migration, and democratic institutions as they relate to the Syrian context.
Haddon writes on Syria's political economy, reconstruction, and governance. His analysis has appeared in Foreign Policy, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Lawfare, and L'Orient-Le Jour. He holds a BA from Princeton University.
Bylines
Previous experience
Education
Haddon Barth · Founder
Thomas Strong
Head of Research
Thomas leads the Syria Advisory Group's research programme, including The Syrian Reconstruction Monitor. He brings rigorous analytical depth to SAG's quantitative work on Syria's sectors, legislation, and political economy — ensuring every Monitor issue meets a high standard of primary data and independent analysis.
Princeton University
Alice McCarthy
Director of Advisory
Alice leads SAG's advisory practice, spanning both the pro-bono government consulting programme and the investor advisory offering. She works directly with ministry counterparts on service delivery and policy design, and manages investor mandates across the risk advisory, sourcing, and framework navigation work.
Our Approach
Quantitative first
Every Monitor issue is built on data. We track sector-level indicators, map legislative change, and conduct primary interviews — not summaries of existing analysis.
Free and open
The Monitor is published freely on Substack. Quality reconstruction research should be available to anyone with an interest in Syria — not gated by an institutional subscription.
No conflicts
We hold no commercial interests in Syria and represent no government. The same analysis we publish in The Monitor underpins our advisory engagements. No hierarchy of access.
Direct engagement
We engage directly with ministries pro-bono and directly with investors. There is no intermediary. That directness keeps our research current and our advisory grounded in reality.
Ministry, investor, or researcher — get in touch. Most conversations start with a single email.