trying to build a modern SaaS in Syria is an absolute joke
So I’ve spent the past 15 months pouring my soul into solo-developing a hybrid offline/cloud accounting and inventory system. Technically, it’s awesome. Since internet and power cuts here are constant, I built it offline-first, but synced it up to a Supabase instance running in Frankfurt so business owners can track everything from their phones in real-time. Surprisingly, Supabase works perfectly from here, no IP blocking or VPN needed, which felt like a massive win during testing.
But then I started looking into the actual legal and deployment reality in this country, and it’s depressing.
The government wants to force all accounting software to integrate with their mandatory tax API for real-time e-invoicing. Fine, whatever, but at the same exact time, they have these strict "data sovereignty" laws that forbid storing any local financial or business data on servers outside the country.
And here is the absolute hypocrisy of it all: they ban you from using world-class cloud infrastructure like AWS or Supabase, but they don't even have a single modern local cloud alternative! There is literally zero reliable local infrastructure that matches today's tech standards. They basically expect you to host sensitive financial data on archaic, unreliable local servers, or you’re breaking the law.
It’s just so incredibly frustrating. The tech works beautifully, the API calls to Frankfurt are smooth, but the outdated, hyper-strict regulations completely tie your hands. Why is the system designed to choke technological advancement instead of supporting devs who are trying to build something useful?
I’m seriously debating if I should just strip out all the cloud features for the local market and sell it as a basic offline app from the 2000s, or just say screw it and pivot the entire product to the Gulf region. How do other devs deal with this garbage?