Women Entrepreneurs in Palestine

This chapter explores the experiences of, and challenges faced by, women entrepreneurs in Palestine. The critical review of available literature revealed that the politically unstable context resulted in the transformation of traditional gender norms. The high level of unemployment and poverty have pushed Palestinian women to engage in entrepreneurial activities out of necessity. Nevertheless, Palestine still has a very low number of women’s entrepreneurial activities due to the structural and institutional challenges they face. Although many women are highly educated, they still face numerous barriers to entering the workforce, which have a negative impact on their human and social capital. Women entrepreneurs in Palestine not only fight the difficult political and security conditions but also patriarchal norms and structures. Therefore, they demonstrate resilience by defying their contextual embeddedness while contributing to social change. The advancements in technology and the affordability of using social media are creating more opportunities for Palestinian women to start and run businesses. This chapter contributes to the growing literature on women’s entrepreneurship in the Middle East and mainly in under-researched contexts affected by political instabilities.