Sldp

Name

Sldp

Legal name

Syrian Legal Development Programme

Website

https://sldp.ngo

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

International Human Rights Legal Advisory Services

NAICS

Human Rights Organizations (813311)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Humanitarian-Development-Peace Nexus & Resilience Programming (BPADAEAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

United Nations System & Specialized Agencies (BPADAAAA)

Keywords

• International law advisory
• Human rights due diligence
• Transitional justice services
• Business and human rights
• Syria legal capacity building

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Donor Funding: SLDP is primarily funded through grants and donations from international development agencies and foundations. Current donors include the Federal Republic of Germany – Foreign Office, Christian Aid, and Open Society Foundations. Previous donors include Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA), Global Affairs Canada, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, and Impunity Watch.
2. Advisory and Consultancy Services: SLDP offers paid consultancy services to businesses and investors operating in Syria, including partially subsidised services. Services cover strategic HRDD advisory, international legal analysis, political economy and conflict dynamics analysis, partner and supply chain screening, and rights-holder engagement facilitation. Revenue is generated through project-based consultancy, long-term strategic advisory partnerships, and capacity-building and training programmes.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

SLDP provides specialised advisory services to businesses and investors operating in or entering Syria, covering strategic human rights due diligence (HRDD), international legal analysis, political economy and conflict dynamics analysis, partner and supply chain screening, and rights-holder engagement facilitation. Through its two units (ILSU and HRBU) it also delivers capacity-building training to Syrian NGOs and victims' associations, and develops domain-specific research tools such as the UN Suppliers Dashboard and the Humanitarian HRDD Tool.

Product overview

SLDP is a non-governmental legal organization offering advisory services and research tools focused on human rights, justice, and accountability in Syria. The organization operates through two main units: the International Law Support Unit (ILSU) and the Human Rights and Business Unit (HRBU). Its product portfolio includes five advisory services (Strategic HRDD Advisory, International Legal Analysis, Political Economy & Conflict Dynamics Analysis, Partner & Supply Chain Screening, and Rights-Holder Engagement Facilitation), research tools including the UN Suppliers Dashboard and HRDD Tool, and publications/reports. These offerings are designed to help businesses, NGOs, governments, and victims' groups navigate legal challenges related to Syrian human rights and reconstruction.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Strategic Human Rights Due Diligence (HRDD) Advisory Support for businesses and investors integrating HRDD into decision-making and operational planning in Syria, including identification and mitigation of actual and potential human rights and environmental risks, and ongoing updates on Syria's evolving human rights and conflict landscape.
• International Legal Analysis Legal analysis grounded in international human rights law, international humanitarian law, and environmental law, with guidance on legal exposure risks under international and domestic accountability mechanisms for businesses and investors in Syria.
• Political Economy and Conflict Dynamics Analysis Political and conflict-sensitive analysis of actors and power structures in Syria; mapping of informal economies, sanctioned actors, and elite networks; and sectoral mapping of historical harm and patterns of marginalisation for businesses and investors.
• Partner and Supply Chain Screening Vetting of local partners and intermediaries in Syria for links to rights violations, and heightened due diligence on affiliations with sanctioned or abusive individuals or entities.
• Rights-Holder Engagement Facilitation Support for inclusive and meaningful engagement with rights-holders in Syria, including victims, survivors, and affected communities; trusted facilitation between businesses and rights-holders to promote transparency and adherence to human rights.
• UN Suppliers Dashboard Interactive platform mapping the top 100 UN suppliers in Syria across the 2019–2020, 2021–2022, and 2023 contract periods, with each supplier classified by human rights-related risk level; users can explore supplier profiles, search for specific entities, and visualise procurement funding volumes.
• Human Rights-Compliant Procurement and Risk Assessment Tool Joint SLDP–Human Rights Watch tool that assists procurement officials (notably UN agencies operating in Syria) in identifying suppliers potentially involved in conflict-related human rights abuses, focusing on egregious violations including arbitrary detentions, torture, unlawful attacks on civilians, property rights violations, and extrajudicial killings, and aligned with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
• Human Rights Due Diligence (HRDD) Tool for Humanitarian and Development Projects in Syria Tool integrating human rights considerations into the planning and implementation of humanitarian and development projects in conflict zones in Syria, with a focus on northwest Syria; validated with 21 representatives from 15 NGOs.

Quantifiable outcome

• Nearly 47% of UN procurement funding in Syria during 2019–2020 was awarded to suppliers classified as risky or highly risky, highlighting systemic concerns in humanitarian procurement.
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Human Rights WatchcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSLDP partnered with Human Rights Watch to develop the Human Rights-Compliant Procurement and Risk Assessment Tool for UN agencies operating in Syria. This joint tool helps identify suppliers potentially involved in conflict-related human rights abuses and aligns with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. The partnership was also featured in AP News and the Financial Times.
• Observatory of Political and Economic Networks (OPEN)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSLDP collaborated with OPEN to conduct comprehensive mapping of UN suppliers in Syria for 2019–2020, 2021–2022, and 2023. The joint study 'UN Procurement Contracts in Syria: A Few Bad Apples?' was published and featured in international media including AP News and at a public launch event in Washington DC.
• Diakonia IHL Centre – Syria Regional DeskcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSLDP collaborated with the Diakonia IHL Centre and the Syrian Civil Society Networks Platform to develop and validate the Human Rights Due Diligence (HRDD) Tool for humanitarian and development projects in Syria. The tool was introduced and validated at a workshop in Gaziantep with 21 representatives from 15 NGOs. The IHL Centre is part of the Blue Sky Collective Initiative, funded by the Disasters Emergency Committee and led by Christian Aid.
• International Bar Association's Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSLDP co-organized a panel with IBAHRI and The Day After (TDA) during Geneva Peace Week 2025 on 'Prioritising Peace and Justice: Advancing and Harmonising Legal Accountability Frameworks in Syria.'
• The Day After (TDA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSLDP co-organized a panel with IBAHRI and TDA during Geneva Peace Week 2025 on legal accountability frameworks in Syria's transition.
• Syrian Global Business Association and The Syria ReportminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSLDP partnered with the Syrian Global Business Association and The Syria Report to host the First Syrian Conference on Business and Human Rights, addressing how Syria's reconstruction can be grounded in human dignity.
• Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression (SCM)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSLDP partnered with SCM to organize a two-day roundtable in Damascus on criminal accountability within transitional justice in Syria, building on seven months of dialogue with civil society organizations and victims' groups.
• Friedrich-Ebert-StiftungminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSLDP partnered with Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung to organize a roundtable on Business, Human Rights and aid provision in Syria, discussing practical steps aid organizations should take to prevent and address business-related human rights abuses.
• Berghof FoundationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSLDP collaborated with the Berghof Foundation in planning a workshop on 'International Support to Transitional Justice in Syria: Lessons Learned and Moving Forward', attended by 72 participants from multiple stakeholder groups.
• The Syrian Forum and Legal Action Worldwide (LAW)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSLDP participated in the first side event hosted by the Permanent Syrian Mission to the United Nations in Geneva on justice and accountability, organized by The Syrian Forum and Legal Action Worldwide (LAW).
• Truth and Justice Charter (TJC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSLDP partnered with the Truth and Justice Charter and the Association of Detainees and the Missing of Sednaya Prison (ADMSP) to file a criminal complaint before Argentina's federal courts under the principle of universal jurisdiction against Bashar al-Assad, Asma'a al-Assad, and key Syrian regime officials for crimes against humanity of enforced disappearance.
• Association of Detainees and the Missing of Sednaya Prison (ADMSP)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSLDP partnered with ADMSP and the Truth and Justice Charter to file a universal jurisdiction case in Argentina regarding enforced disappearance and the systematic disappearance of children in Syria.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Human Rights Watch: Global human rights organisation; co-developer of SLDP's procurement risk assessment tool and operates at much larger scale in overlapping Syria and business-and-human-rights work.
• International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ): Global leader in transitional justice programming and policy; directly comparable for SLDP's transitional justice advisory work, with significantly broader geographic scope and donor base.
• European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR): Berlin-based legal NGO pursuing strategic litigation and corporate accountability; comparable for SLDP's universal-jurisdiction work and business-and-human-rights advisory practice.
• Open Society Justice Initiative: OSF's strategic litigation arm pursuing accountability and human rights cases; comparable to SLDP's litigation and policy work, with substantially more resources and broader geographic reach.

Direct peers

• Lawyers for Justice in Libya: A Libyan-focused legal NGO led by SLDP board member Elham Saudi, applying international law and transitional justice frameworks to accountability work — the closest organisational analogue to SLDP's ILSU model.
• The Day After (TDA): Syrian civil society organisation focused on democratic transition and human rights; SLDP co-organises accountability panels with TDA, and the two serve overlapping constituencies of Syrian NGOs and victims' groups.
• REDRESS: International NGO working on torture, enforced disappearance, and corporate accountability through legal action — comparable in legal focus area (notably enforced disappearance, central to SLDP's mandate).
• Center for Justice and Accountability (CJA): Specialises in universal-jurisdiction and corporate accountability litigation, directly analogous to SLDP's Argentina filing and broader corporate accountability mandate.
• Access Center for Human Rights: Syrian-focused human rights organisation working on documentation and international advocacy — closely comparable in mission, geography, and donor ecosystem to SLDP.
• Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR): Leading Syrian human rights documentation organisation producing widely cited reports on violations; highly comparable as a Syrian-focused civil society actor addressing accountability through international mechanisms.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/syrianldp?lang=en
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@sldp8043
• Facebookfacebook.com/syrianldp
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/syrian-legal-development-programme
• Instagraminstagram.com/sldp.free

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Sldp