Syria has requested bids from international suppliers to print new currency notes as part of its efforts to boost the devalued pound, its central bank governor told Reuters on Wednesday.

Speaking to Reuters on the sidelines of a summit for Arab central bank governors in Tunis, Abdelkader Husrieh said Syria would aim to complete the printing within three months.

According to sources and documents, Syria is planning to issue new banknotes, removing two zeroes from its currency in an attempt to restore public confidence in the severely devalued pound.

Husrieh said that the number of Syria's correspondent banks has been growing following his recent visits to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, although he did not provide a specific number.

He said that he will be attending an international banking conference in Frankfurt later this month where he hopes the number will expand further.

Syria's pound has lost more than 99% of its value since 2011, with the exchange rate now about 11,000 pounds to the U.S. dollar, compared with 50 before the war.

(Reporting by Tarek Amara; Additional reporting by Maya Gebeily; Editing by Joe Bavier, Aidan Lewis)