Understanding How Entrepreneurship Innovation Solves Women's Challenges in the Arab Region

Abstract

Sustainable economic growth is a top priority for Oman, aiming to lessen reliance on oil and increase economic diversification. The government sees entrepreneurship and innovation as vital players in creating jobs, diversifying the economy, and transforming the economy from a traditional to a knowledge-based economy. Under the Visions 2020-2040, the government has developed programs to enhance and encourage women's engagement in SMEs to maximize returns, create employment opportunities, and reduce the market and institutional failures. Lack of women engagement in SMEs is due to barriers of entrants and women who intend to start their own business can face challenges that lead to failure in their business endeavors. Among these challenges are government policies, financial support, supporting R&D, and culture. Further research is necessary to investigate factors that motivate Omanis to become entrepreneurs and overcome the obstacles. The main objective of this chapter is to develop a conceptual framework to highlight the main challenges that limit Omani women from participating in SMEs.

Fear of failure for entrepreneurs in emerging economies: stress, risk, finances, hard work, and social support

“…lack of inaccessible financial, aversion to risk, aversion to stress and hard work, and business failure experience) as crucial components. Significantly, we identified social capital as the moderating condition in allowing entrepreneurs to effectively deal with venture challenges while decreasing the stressful and unpleasant parts of feeling entrepreneurial fear of failure (Fattah and Al Halbusi, 2022). Social capital is a source for young entrepreneurs to cope with these obstacles.…”

– The European Conference on Arts & Humanities 2023: Official Conference Proceedings

“…Oman has acknowledged the importance of liberalization and privatization (by joining WTO in 2000) of its economic policies that can help in boosting the economic growth rate. For this purpose, the Omani government has long started offering encouragement for individuals, both men, and women equally, to involve with their creative business ideas to contribute to the economic development of the nation (Fattah and Al Halbusi, 2022). The fifth five-year plan has conceived the long-term development strategy and has most importantly given importance to diversifying the annual income resources of the country, boosting private investments, both domestic and overseas, in its economy, and enhancing the overall share of the private sector in the overall economic growth process.…”

“…Non-availability of enough wealth is another hindrance that a small project run by women needs to encounter. To start a new business financial assets and relevant knowledge assets play an important role (Fattah and Al Halbusi, 2022). But as already mentioned, women's present positions in the conservative Omani society have essentially guided them to lack enough assets in hand in both of these cases.…”