In the Al-Insha'at district of Homs, Governor Marhaf Al-Na'san laid the foundation stone for the Al-Salam Mall project on Friday 5 June 2026, with official, economic and community figures attending (SANA). The project includes an automated bakery, which Damascus Radio and Syrian Ikhbariya call Bayt Al-Khubz. The Ministry of Economy and Industry announced the project through its official channels the same day. According to SANA, the project is being built where the former automated bakery stood.

Project Scope and Components

The project covers a total area of about 5,000 square metres and combines two functions: a commercial and service complex with a variety of shops, restaurants, and recreational and service facilities, and an automated bakery that the Ministry of Economy and Industry described as advanced and said would operate to modern quality standards. SANA reports that the new bakery has a doubled production capacity, and quotes the manager of the project's design company as saying that about 800 square metres are allocated to it. Wael Barghal, Director of Internal Trade and Consumer Protection in Homs, told Damascus Radio that the bakery is expected to have a capacity of 12 tonnes a day. In June 2026 the Ministry said the step aims to strengthen the governorate's service and commercial infrastructure and support its food security, and that the project would help stimulate economic activity and provide bread to residents on a lasting basis.

Investment Structure and Legal Framework

According to the Ministry of Economy and Industry, the project is carried out as an investment on land belonging to the Syrian Bakeries Establishment, and ownership of the commercial complex will revert in full to the Establishment when the investment contract ends; the Ministry said this arrangement makes better use of public assets and supports development and service projects in the governorate. SANA describes the arrangement as a public-private partnership on a Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) basis (a model in which a private investor finances, builds, and operates an asset for a defined period before returning it to the public owner). According to Barghal, the investor funds, builds and operates the project for a contract term set on the basis of the approved feasibility study; when it ends, the complex and its fittings pass to the Establishment, and he said this happens without financial burdens on the state treasury. One of the project's shareholders described the project to SANA as a partnership between the state and a group of investors.

Timeline and Expected Employment

SANA reported that the works are expected to be completed within 18 months, the same period given by shareholder Abdulsalam Fayad. Fayad told SANA that the project would create about 2,500 jobs for construction workers during implementation and more than 500 permanent jobs once operating, across the shops, service facilities and game halls. Barghal said the project would help create hundreds of direct and indirect jobs for local residents, on both its production and commercial sides. These figures are statements by the people quoted and may change as work proceeds. More recent information on the implementation programme appears in the update dated 7 June 2026.

Officials and Stakeholders

The foundation-stone ceremony was attended by a number of officials and project stakeholders, according to SANA and the Ministry's statement, including:

• Deputy Minister of Economy and Industry Maher Khalil Al-Hassan
• Governor of Homs Marhaf Al-Na'san, who laid the foundation stone
• Director General of the Syrian Bakeries Establishment Mohammad Al-Sayyadi
• Director of Internal Trade and Consumer Protection in Homs Wael Barghal
• Investor Abdulsalam Fayad, one of the project's shareholders
• A number of officials and business figures

Deputy Minister Al-Hassan told SANA that the project represents the nucleus of several similar projects across Syria, and he expected it to become a model of public-private cooperation in future investments.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is the Al-Salam Mall and automated bakery project located?
The project is located in the Al-Insha'at district of Homs, on the site of the former automated bakery, according to SANA.

When was the foundation stone laid?
The Governor of Homs laid the foundation stone on Friday 5 June 2026.

What is the total area of the project?
The project covers about 5,000 square metres, of which about 800 square metres are allocated to the new bakery, according to the design company's manager quoted by SANA.

What does the project include?
It includes a commercial and service complex of various shops, restaurants, and recreational and service facilities, alongside an automated bakery whose expected capacity Wael Barghal put at 12 tonnes a day.

Who owns the land and how is the project structured?
According to the Ministry of Economy and Industry, the land belongs to the Syrian Bakeries Establishment, and ownership of the commercial complex reverts in full to the Establishment when the investment contract ends. SANA describes the project as a public-private partnership on a Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) basis.

How long will the works take?
According to SANA, the works are expected to be completed within 18 months. The Syrian Bakeries Establishment told Enab Baladi that the date operation begins will depend on finishing construction, fit-out and technical testing.

How many jobs is the project expected to create?
One of the project's shareholders told SANA that it would provide about 2,500 jobs during construction and more than 500 permanent jobs once operating.

Who are the officials and investors associated with the project?
Attendees included Deputy Minister of Economy and Industry Maher Khalil Al-Hassan, Governor of Homs Marhaf Al-Na'san, and Syrian Bakeries Establishment Director General Mohammad Al-Sayyadi, with investor Abdulsalam Fayad among the project's shareholders.

What is the project's status according to the latest reports (7 June 2026)?
The foundation stone was laid on 5 June 2026. According to the Syrian Bakeries Establishment (Enab Baladi, 7 June 2026), the project has an implementation programme and the date operation begins will be set later.

UPDATE 07.06.2026, IMPLEMENTATION PROGRAMME AND FURTHER DETAILS FROM THE REPORTS

Implementation programme. In a report published on 7 June 2026, Enab Baladi quoted the Director of Planning, Statistics and International Cooperation at the Syrian Bakeries Establishment as saying that the project has an implementation programme divided into approved technical and administrative stages, and that the actual start of operation will be set once construction, fit-out and technical testing are finished. He added that there are currently no similar projects in other governorates, and that the Ministry continuously studies and carries out projects of this kind in more than one governorate.

Further details from the ceremony reports (SANA, 5 June 2026). One of the project's shareholders said the site had been a large area that was not being used as well as it could be, which led to contact with Homs Governorate about redeveloping it, and that several designs were prepared before the current one was adopted. The manager of the design company said the project's design is built on simplicity and modernity and takes the area's architectural character into account.