Abstract
This paper discusses the possibility of the tenth Five-Year Development Plan, for the period 2006-2010, in providing the appropriate environment for the transition to Social Market Economy adopted by the Syrian government in the tenth national conference of the Al-Baath Party. The plan reflected the key trends of the state that enabling it to make the transition to social market economy, and charge the government with the instruction to complete the reforming project of the economic, social, and administrative aspects, and preparing the Syrian economy and the Syrian society to the requirements of the new economy that characterized by the transition to knowledge-based economy, and competitive edge and high productivity, as well as the ability to use technology and advanced communications, via the ability to access information and rely on highly skilled manpower able to achieve creativity and innovation. Regarding the economic aspect, the plan emphasize on the optimal employment of resources, through reformation and rehabilitation of the public sector, and via enabling the private investment to invest in the national sectors of the economy, and strengthen the partnership between the private sector and the public sector as fundamental sectors, and the need to open broadly. The plan was also confirmed on the social justice through achieving balanced regional development, and provide direct support to those who deserve attention as well as concerning the most vulnerable segments. The liaison and coordination between economic and social aspects should be considered as a corner stone of the social market economy. In order to achieve what have been mentioned above, this requires an integration between reforming the national economy and place it on solid foundations to ensure achieving high growth rates. At the end, the research has reached a conclusion, through reviewing the performance of the Tenth Five Year Plan, that the plan has failed in achieving its general objectives aimed to transit to a social market economy, because of the local and global circumstances that befell the Syrian society during the years of the plan. The paper at the end provides a number of useful recommendations. .
