Saudi Female Entrepreneurs, Situation and Challenges

Abstract

Entrepreneurship concept has spread between Saudi youths instead of employment in the public or private sectors. In the last decade, Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the Saudi market were occupied by non-Saudis especially in the major cities. Therefore, the government with the cooperation of private sector has established programs and initiatives to support young Saudis to open their own businesses and become entrepreneurs. The vision of Saudi Arabia 2030 has set a goal to increase contribution of the SMEs to the economy. One key performance indicator of the vision is to increase the contribution of entrepreneurs from 20% to 35 by 2030 with a focus on supporting female employment and empowerment. This paper employed survey research to assess the current situation of female entrepreneurs in Saudi Arabia. The study revealed that most female Saudi entrepreneurs own small home operated businesses. Financial funding and unawareness of supportive programs were found to be the main obstacles that are currently facing the development of female entrepreneurs in the Saudi market. The research concluded with recommendations in which are believed can help to overcome the obstacles females are facing in establishing and running a business.