Majida has been working from a central Damascus cafe almost every day for a year, depending on it for reliable electricity and wifi in a country plagued by debilitating power cuts.
“Without cafes, I would have been unable to work because of the long blackouts at home,” said the graphic designer, 42, declining to provide her surname.
Enterprising owners have upgraded their businesses with generators and batteries to guarantee power and draw in Damascenes plagued by Syria’s war-battered and crumbling infrastructure.
“I need a continuous power supply (to work) — and I get my inspiration from the people here,” added Majida, drawing designs on a tablet on the cafe’s sofa.
Nearly 13 years of civil war have hammered Syria’s infrastructure, including power stations and energy pipelines, leading to power outages that can drag on for up to 20 hours a day.
Key oil and gas fields in the country’s northeast have not been under government control for years, while Western sanctions have hampered resource imports and strained public funds.
In 2021, Economy Minister Samer al-Khalil said energy sector losses since 2011 amounted to around “$100 billion in direct and indirect damages”.
In the Syrian capital, the shortages have sparked a boom in cafes turned informal co-working spaces for electricity hungry workers and students.
At Flow Space Coffee, a colourful cafe with a quiet, studious ambiance, customers including Majida type on laptops or sip coffee while shuffling through papers.
The owner, Ihsan Azmeh, 38, whose friendly white dog Lilly is also a regular, said he wanted the cafe to be a place for young workers and students when he opened it three years ago.
“Damascus cafes solve at least three problems for people these days: electricity, internet and heating,” he said.
