Middle East Countries Research Articles

Heterogeneity of investor sentiment, geopolitical risk and economic policy uncertainty: do Islamic banks differ during COVID-19 pandemic?

PurposeThis study examined the impact of; COVID-19 investor sentiment, COVID-19 cases, geopolitical risk (GPR), economic policy uncertainty (EPU), oil returns and Islamic banking on bank stock returns. In addition, it examined whether Islamic bank stock returns differed from conventional banks when interacting with selected variables.Design/methodology/approachThis study consisted of 137 conventional and Islamic stock market listed banks in 16 Middle East and North Africa (MENA) countries from February 2020 to July 2021. Monthly data were used for bank stock returns, number of COVID-19 cases, COVID-19 investor sentiment, oil price and EPU, while GPR data were obtained annually. This paper used unconditional quantile regression (UQR) in its analysis.FindingsCOVID-19 investor sentiment and EPU negatively influenced bank stock returns. However, oil returns were only positive and significant in first quantile. Conversely, GPR negatively impacted bank returns up to the median quantile, while the impact was positive in upper quantiles. Islamic banks outperformed conventional banks in all quantiles. Additionally, GPR negatively influenced Islamic bank returns up to 75th quantile, while oil returns negatively impacted Islamic bank returns up to 95th quantile. Ultimately, COVID-19 investor sentiment and EPU positively influenced Islamic bank returns up to 95th quantile.Practical implicationsMarket conditions must be considered when implementing investment decisions and policies, as the effects of market shocks are mostly asymmetrical. For example, it is important for international investors to take into consideration asymmetric factors, such as market uncertainty in oil market. Especially in bearish Islamic markets, bad news concerning uncertainty can be perceived as riskier than good news.Social implicationsA change in health sentiment, such as COVID-19 cases and COVID-19 investor sentiment, can be used to determine future direction of conventional and Islamic stock markets. Asymmetric effects associated with market news can make portfolio management more effective. COVID-19 investor sentiment states can be used to predict Islamic market index dynamics in MENA region.Originality/valueThis paper offered insight into heterogeneity of market conditions and dependencies of Islamic banks' stock market returns on COVID-19 investor sentiment and uncertainty, among others that should be considered when implementing investment decisions and policies.

Credit quality determinants of banks: how important are bankruptcy reforms?

PurposeAlthough several microeconomic and macroeconomic factors driving banks' credit quality have been well-studied in the literature, one aspect which appears to have received limited attention is bankruptcy reforms. To address this issue, the author exploits data on Middle East and North Africa (MENA) country banks during the period 2010–2020 and examines the impact of bankruptcy laws on their credit quality.Design/methodology/approachIn view of the staggered nature of the implementation of legal reforms across countries, the author utilize a difference-in-differences specification to tease out the causal impact.FindingsThe findings reveal that bankruptcy reforms lead to a significant improvement in banks' credit quality. The impact is manifest mainly for conventional banks and driven by an increase in recovery intensity. The author also presents evidence which shows that such reforms exert positive real effects, although this impact differs across country characteristics.Originality/valueThe study is among the early ones for the MENA region to assess the interlinkage between bankruptcy reforms and banks' credit quality.

An ecological study of the burden of road traffic crashes in the Middle East and North Africa

Road traffic injuries (RTIs) and deaths constitute a serious preventable global public health problem. To analyse time trends of age-standardized mortality rates and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) caused by RTIs in 23 Middle East and North Africa (MENA) countries; and to assess the correlation between national implementation of best practice for road safety recommended by the World Health Organization, national income level, and RTI burden. Time trend analysis over 17 years (2000-2016) was conducted using Joinpoint regression. An overall score was calculated for each country to assess implementation of best practice for road safety. Mortality decreased significantly (P < 0.05) in Islamic Republic of Iran, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, and Tunisia. In most MENA countries, DALYs increased but they significantly decreased in the Islamic Republic of Iran. The score calculated varied widely among the MENA countries. In 2016, no correlation was identified between the overall score and mortality and DALYs. National income was not associated with RTI mortality or the calculated overall score. Countries in the MENA region had varying levels of success in reducing the burden from RTIs. During the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-2030, MENA countries can achieve optimal road safety by implementing measures that are customized for the local context, such as law enforcement and public education. Other focus areas for improving road safety are building capacity in sustainable safety management and leadership, improving vehicle standards, and addressing gaps in areas such as use of child restraint.

Satellite observation of atmospheric CO2 and water storage change over Iran

Like many other Middle East countries, Iran has been suffering from severe water shortages over the last two decades, as evidenced by significant decline in surface water and groundwater levels. The observed changes in water storage can be attributed to the mutually reinforcing effects of human activities, climatic variability, and of course the climate change. The objective of this study is to analyze the dependency of atmospheric CO2 increase on the water shortage of Iran, for which we investigate the spatial relationship between water storage change and CO2 concentration using large scale satellite data. We conduct our analysis using water storage change data from GRACE satellite and atmospheric CO2 concentration from GOSAT and SCIAMACHY satellites during 2002–2015. To analyze the long-term behavior of time series we benefit from Mann-Kendal test and for the investigation of the relationship between atmospheric CO2 concentration and total water storage we use Canonical Correlation Analysis (CCA) and Regression model. Our Results show that the water storage change anomaly and CO2 concentration are negatively correlated especially in northern, western, southwest (Khuzestan province), and also southeast (Kerman, Hormozgan, Sistan, and Baluchestan provinces) of Iran. CCA results reveal that in the most of northern regions, the decrease in water storage is significantly influenced by the increase of CO2 concentration. The results further show that precipitation in the highland and peaks does not seem to be influenced by the long and short-term variation in CO2 concentration. Besides, our results show that the CO2 concentration is slightly correlated with a weak positive trend in evapotranspiration over agricultural areas. Thus, the indirect effect of CO2 on increasing evapotranspiration is observed spatially in the whole of Iran. The results of the regression model between total water storage change and carbon dioxide (R2 = 0.91)/water discharge/water consumption show that carbon dioxide has the highest effect on total water storage change at large scale. The results of this study will contribute to both water resource management and mitigation plans to achieve the goal of CO2 emission reduction.

Insecurity in the Middle East: Why Do the Reformist Movements Constantly Fail? Towards a New Conceptual Framework

Over the last three decades, the Middle East countries have frequently witnessed popular protests against the authoritarian regimes. The question is why these protests never come to a desirable end? Regardless of the role played by foreign actors in perpetuating the authoritarian regimes of the Middle East, it seems that what causes the protests not to be pervasive and the political infrastructures not to collapse is that the protests have not been supported by the people’s majority. The present article argues that such a dearth of support refers to a fundamental cause that we named the fear cycle. This cycle includes the masses’ fear of the regime, fear of the movement’s failure and its dire consequences, and fear of the political system that is supposed to come to power after the overthrow of the incumbent government. The governments have an important role in creating and perpetuating this fear and turning it into a panic.

The effect of political risk and corporate governance on bank stability in the MENA region: Did the Arab Spring uprisings matter?

This study examines the impact of political risk and corporate governance mechanisms (CGM) on bank stability. The research problem was addressed using a sample of 954 bank-year observations from 14 Middle East and North Africa (MENA) countries during the period 2010–2018 to take into account the effect of the recent uprisings that broke out in the MENA region (i.e., Arab Spring events). This study uses the three-Stage Least-Squares (3SLS) regression method for data analysis. It is found that political stability enhances banks’ financial stability. Regarding the impact of CGM, it is found that board size, board independence, managerial ownership, and audit committee size and meetings significantly and positively affect bank stability. In contrast, board meetings, board gender diversity, CEO duality, and institutional ownership significantly and negatively affect bank financial stability. By dividing the sample into two subsamples (Arab Spring countries and Non-Arab Spring countries), the results revealed that the Arab uprising events significantly affect the relationship between political stability, CGM, and bank stability.

A Review of Managed Aquifer Recharge Potential in the Middle East and North Africa Region with Examples from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates

Groundwater extraction in most Middle East and North Africa (MENA) countries far exceeds its renewability, which ranges from 6% to 100%. Freshwater resources to support food production are very limited in this region. Future climate predictions include more consistent and longer wet periods with increasing surplus rainfall, which will enhance flood and flash flood occurrences in the MENA. Demand management of groundwater resources and managed aquifer recharge (MAR, also called groundwater replenishment, water banking, and artificial recharge, is the purposeful recharge of water to aquifers for subsequent recovery or environmental benefits) represent essential strategies to overcome the challenges associated with groundwater depletion and climate change impacts. Such strategies would enable the development of groundwater resources in the MENA region by minimizing the stress placed on these resources, as well as reducing deterioration in groundwater quality. Groundwater augmentation through recharge dams is a common practice in different countries around the globe. Most dams in the MENA region were built to enhance groundwater recharge, and even the few protection dams also act as recharge dams in one way or another. However, the operating systems of these dams are mostly dependent on the natural infiltration of the accumulated water in the reservoir area, with limited application of MAR. This review presents analyses of groundwater renewability and the effectiveness of recharge dams on groundwater recharge, as well as the potential of MAR technology. This study indicates that the recharge efficiency of dam’s ranges between 15 to 47% and is clustered more around the lower limit. Efficiency is reduced by the clogging of the reservoir bed with fine materials. Therefore, there is a need to improve the operation of dams using MAR technology.

Burden of tracheal, bronchus, and lung cancer in North Africa and Middle East countries, 1990 to 2019: Results from the GBD study 2019.

To provide estimates on the regional and national burden of tracheal, bronchus, and lung (TBL) cancer and its attributable risk factors from 1990 to 2019 in the North Africa and Middle East (NAME) region. The Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2019 data were used. Disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), death, incidence, and prevalence rates were categorized by sex and age groups in the NAME region, in 21 countries, from 1990 to 2019. Decomposition analysis was performed to calculate the proportion of responsible factors in the emergence of new cases. Data are presented as point estimates with their 95% uncertainty intervals (UIs). In the NAME region, TBL cancer caused 15,396 and 57,114 deaths in women and men, respectively, in 2019. The age-standardized incidence rate (ASIR) increased by 0.7% (95% UI -20.6 to 24.1) and reached 16.8 per 100,000 (14.9 to 19.0) in 2019. All the age-standardized indices had a decreasing trend in men and an increasing trend in women from 1990 to 2019. Turkey (34.9 per 100,000 [27.6 to 43.5]) and Sudan (8.0 per 100,000 [5.2 to 12.5]) had the highest and lowest age-standardized prevalence rates (ASPRs) in 2019, respectively. The highest and lowest absolute slopes of change in ASPR, from 1990 to 2019, were seen in Bahrain (-50.0% (-63.6 to -31.7)) and the United Arab Emirates (-1.2% (-34.1 to 53.8)), respectively. The number of deaths attributable to risk factors was 58,816 (51,709 to 67,323) in 2019 and increased by 136.5%. Decomposition analysis showed that population growth and age structure change positively contributed to new incident cases. More than 80% of DALYs could be decreased by controlling risk factors, particularly tobacco use. The incidence, prevalence, and DALY rates of TBL cancer increased, and the death rate remained unchanged from 1990 to 2019. All the indices and contribution of risk factors decreased in men but increased in women. Tobacco is still the leading risk factor. Early diagnosis and tobacco cessation policies should be improved.

The importance of service design and information and analysis in enhancing organizational performance through a mechanism of organizational excellence in public sector organizations

PurposeThe study aims to examine the joint effect of service design (SD), information and analysis (IA) and organizational performance through the mechanism of organizational excellence.Design/methodology/approachTo achieve the goal of this study through the hypothesized model, a survey questionnaire research design was employed. The data were collected from Dubai Police organization. Out of 550 questionnaires, 320 questionnaires were returned. The partial least square structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) approach was used to analyze the data for measurement and structural models.FindingsThe statistical results confirmed the positive and significant effects of IA on organizational excellence and excellence on organizational performance. The mediation role of organizational excellence between IA and organizational performance was also confirmed.Research limitations/implicationsThroughout this study, further details and valuable implications have been discussed. Findings provide several practical implications. Findings also help practitioners and managers make proper decisions when implementing SD, IA and excellence practices in their organizations. With the joint effect of SD, IA and organizational excellence, organizations can achieve maximum strong performance and remain in a competitive market.Originality/valueThis study is a unique empirical research study that examines the joint effect of SD, IA and excellence on performance relationships within the public sector in general and police organization in particular, which is limited especially in research of Middle East countries.

Differences in Corporate Law of Russia and Arab States: Influence on Translation Activity

The authors of the paper proceed from the assumption that translation from Arabic into Russian and vice versa will be instrumental in strengthening economic ties of Russia with the Middle East countries and expanding foreign trade of companies in the near future. They substantiate the idea that success of foreign trade activities largely depends on the extent to which differences in the corporate law of Russia and Arab states are taken into consideration. The paper offers a review of differences in the corporate law that affect translation activity and highlights their main reasons related, first and foremost, to different conditions in which legal systems of Russia and the Middle East countries were formed. Using specific examples, the authors consider the main translation problems predetermined by differences in the corporate law of various states as well as in the terminological systems of the corporate law, and offer various means of solving the problems. It is concluded that the main principle of solving problems faced in translation is to transfer the meaning implied by the source text sender.

Sustainable Development, Electricity Generation and Renewable Energy substitution in Middle East Countries and Cooperation of Iran

The energy category over the world has been considered as Coal, Natural Gas, Hydro, Nuclear, Wind, Oil and Solar PV by means of 38%; 29%, 16%; 10%and %5 respectively. Where the main reserve holders of Russia, Iran, Qatar, U.S.A. and Saudi Arabia r, have regarded natural gas as an alternative of energy. In which Iran is in the second position after Russia. Where the electricity generation has been considered by China, U.S.A, India, Russia, Japan and Canada respectively and Iran is in the 14th place. Besides renewable energy, capacity installed over the world is in terms of GW-2019 has been defined by China, U.S.A, and Brazil, India, and Germany respectively. However, solar power installed in Middle East Countries and Africa (MENA) is in terms of Terra watt-hour per year by Algeria, Libya, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia. Whereas solar power markets has been classified by China, India, Japan, Australia, Mexico, Turkey and Netherland in GW-2018 respectively Iran has been considered for the energy resource of Oil as 25%, Natural Gas as 69%, and Hydroelectricity as 6% in 2018 as the main respectively. China, U.S.A., India, Japan and Australia have respected the solar power market consideration in GW-2018 as the most important countries. Other considerations for CO2 emission over the globe has been made by China (27.2%), U.S.A (14.58%), India (6.82%), Russia (4.68%), Japan (3.33%) and, Germany (2.21%) as the most important ones.

Does Social Mobility Matter? The Kafala System and Anti-Immigrant Sentiment

Existing studies argue that anti-immigrant sentiment stems from threat perception. Yet, conventional theoretical approaches cannot fully explain hostility toward immigrants in the Middle East and North Africa, where low-skilled foreign workers occupy an inferior social and legal status vis-a-vis natives under the kafala system. Building on existing studies of immigration politics, we theorize how immigration policies can either facilitate or prevent the social mobility of foreign workers. Exploring immigration attitudes in 14 Middle East and North Africa countries using an original dataset that matches survey responses with host country-specific factors, we find that extreme rights-restricting immigration policies (such as the kafala system) encourage wealthier natives to be more hostile than their lower-class counterparts. Our study suggests that anti-immigrant sentiment is context-specific and influenced by local institutions.

Development and International Migration: The Effect of Income on Regular and Irregular Migration Intentions to Europe

AbstractIn recent years, the development‐migration debate has re‐gained popularity in policy circles, especially after the so‐called “migration crisis” in Europe and the following approval of the European Agenda on Migration. Much of the empirical literature supports the idea that the relationship between international migration and incomes at origin follows hump‐shaped patterns. A growing number of studies find that increasing economic development and financial resources in developing countries would allow a greater number of individuals to afford the costs of emigrating. However, this evidence heavily relies on measures of regular migration only. Using nationally representative data from 12 Middle East and North Africa countries, this study adopts a multinomial logit model to frame migration intentions, distinguishing between regular and irregular routes. The main finding is that the level of household income is associated negatively with the demand for irregular migration to Europe. Predictive margins clearly show that higher household incomes increase the probability of planning only regular migration, while decreasing that of considering also irregular migration. The policy implications are not negligible: improving economic conditions in countries of origin may be effective at deflecting migrants from irregular to regular routes.

Comparison of EPI in the field of climate changes indexes in Iran and other countries in 2020 and the relationship between GDP and EPI

Background: This study aimed to evaluate the Environmental Performance Index (EPI) in the field of climate changes in Iran in 2020, to compare these indexes in the Middle East countries and developed countries, and to evaluate the relationship between these indexes and gross domestic product (GDP) in Iran and some of the Middle East countries, as well as 10 developed countries in the world. Methods: Data related to the EPI in the field of climate changes and GDP were extracted from the database of the Yale University (https://epi.yale.edu) and the World Bank. The relationship between them was investigated using linear regression analysis. Results: The results showed that in 2020, Iran was ranked fourteenth and sixth among the studied countries, in terms of carbon dioxide growth rate and black carbon growth rate, respectively. It has also been ranked first in terms of carbon dioxide from land cover. Also, Iran was ranked eleventh among the Middle East countries and developed countries in terms of methane (CH4 ) growth rate and was ranked sixth among the Middle East countries in terms of greenhouse gas (GHG) per capita and 13th among all studied countries. However, a significant relationship was observed between changes in GDP with GHG emissions of EPI (R2=0.82). Conclusion: Based on the Iran’s ranking in the field of climate change performance index, planning to reduce CHGs generation is necessary. Also, education of citizens in the field of methods to reduce greenhouse effects should be done by environmental policy makers.

Role of Artificial Intelligence in Human Resource Management in the Middle East Countries

The primary goal of this article is to contribute to the field of technology adoption research by providing researchers, organizations, HR leaders, service providers, and decision-makers with advanced understanding and valid inputs on the development of AI-based HR solutions and the determinants of adoption. The overall objective of this research is to determine the general attitude of HR managers toward the adoption of AI in HRM and to assess the factors that determine the adoption of AI from the perspective of HR managers. The proposed adoption factors were grouped into four constructs, innovation characteristics, trust, technology-organizational-environment (TOE) factors, and emphasized HR roles within the organization. The research was conducted among HR managers in Middle Eastern countries, specifically Jordan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar. An online questionnaire was used to collect data from a total of 389 respondents. The results showed that respondents were largely positive toward AI applications in HRM. This positive attitude can be inferred from the mean values of two variables, relative advantage and attitude toward the application of AI in HRM. The research results showed that HR managers have a positive attitude and confidence that emerging AI applications can contribute to supporting the efficiency, effectiveness, and quality of HRM. In addition, the results showed a constructive perception of the relative benefits of AI. Researchers, policymakers, and service providers are also recommended to investigate the phenomenon from two perspectives, first, the impact of attitudes on actual adoption decisions and second, the factors that influence this impact.&#x0D; Keywords: artificial intelligence, HRM, technology adoption, HR leaders, technologicalorganizational- environmental

Frontline Management of Advanced Epithelial Ovarian Cancer: A Comprehensive Statement by the Africa Middle East Cancer Inter-group [AMCI

Abstract: Worldwide, ovarian cancer (OC) is one of the leading causes of cancer-related death among women. Despite the recent progress in the treatment of advanced OC, oncologists in many parts of the world still face several difficulties and constraints in their daily management of their patients. In addition to the shortage of resources and expertise, non-adherence to the up to date international guidelines has been identified as a major obstacle towards the improvement of treatment outcomes in the majority of developing countries, including the Middle East and North African (MENA) countries. A multidisciplinary gynecological oncology panel from the MENA region met virtually in December 2020 to discuss the challenges and hurdles faced by the community oncologists in the management of advanced OC. This manuscript reviews the key molecular and clinical studies that shaped the current international guidelines and suggests several modifications to make them more adaptable to the health status of developing countries of this region

Epidemiological Features of Neurological Disorders in North Africa and the Middle East from 1990 to 2019: Results from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019.

The burden of neurological disorders increases with population growth and aging and nearly three-quarters of the global burden of neurological disorders has been reported in low- and middle-income countries. Therefore, this study aimed to report the epidemiological features and the burden of neurological disorders in North Africa and the Middle East (NAME) countries. The study population included 21 countries in the NAME region with a population of more than 600 million. The Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2019 database was used. In GBD 2019, neurological disorders are classified into 7 diseases and injuries. Incidence rates, prevalence rates, death rates, disability adjusted life years (DALYs) rates by age-standardized rate (ASR) per 100000 people were measured. Also, the attributed burden to high body mass index (BMI), high fasting plasma glucose, smoking, and alcohol use were reported. The highest incidence rates of neurological disorders in 2019 were in Iran 11293.27 (95% UI, 10132.62-12499.59) and Egypt 10257.33 (95% UI, 9189.37-11341.16), respectively, and the highest mortality 41.12 (95% UI, 17.68-92.44) and DALYs 1503.0 (95% UI, 853.8-2492.15) rates were in Afghanistan. In NAME region, the incidence and prevalence rate of neurological disorders increased by 0.84% (10006.37 to 10090.79) and 1.36% (33711.72 to 34170.57) respectively, while the mortality and DALYs rate decreased by 2.75% (34.11 to 33.17) and 3.92% (1438.48 to 1382.14) between 1990 and 2019. The highest decrement of the neurological disorders-related DALYs with a 10.10% decrement pertained to Afghanistan (1671.86 to 1503). The highest increment of the neurological disorders-related DALYs with a 1.89% increment pertained to Morocco (1330.69 to 1355.83). The highest attributed DALYs to alcohol use pertained to Turkey 9.8 (95% UI, 4.23-18.05). The highest attributed DALYs to high BMI 112.23 (95% UI, 29.3-285.75) and high fasting plasma glucose 100.36 (95% UI, 18.79-302.85) pertained to Qatar. The highest attributed DALYs to smoking pertained to Lebanon 106.34 (95% UI, 37.65-253.87). Most DALYs were associated with those aged 75 years and more. Despite progressive reduction in death due to neurological disorders in the NAME region in recent decades, there was a considerable and increasing number of people affected by different neurological disorders. As populations age, societies will face more challenges regarding prevention, detection, treatment, and rehabilitation.

From “Axis of Evil” to “Iran Threat Network”: The Securitization discourse Constructed by the US. Elites Toward Iran

The US government and political elites have long regarded Iran as a threat to US interests, Middle East peace and Israel’s national security. However, the Iranian government has never actively launched any war since its establishment in 1979. In order to explain the “Iran Threat” discourse constructed by the US political elite, the process of discourse formation and proliferation, this article combines security and threat framing theories, and specifically interprets the corresponding materials and documents through the path of description- interpretation- explanation. It points out that the discourse of the American political elites against Iran is not based on facts, rather, the topics are full of ideological attacks and highly subjective extreme judgments. Take Bush as an example, he portrayed Iran as a supporter of terrorism after the 9/11 incident; on this basis, the intelligence and policy consultant agencies of the US government provide corresponding intelligence materials to support the Iranian threat theory. Through the construction of the Iranian threat discourse by political elites, the U.S. political circle has completed the first round of securitization of Iran, and the political topics related to Iran are almost restricted to the discourse system of threat theory, forming a kind of “threat framing” effect. The entire set of political discourses used by the United States against Iran can promote the implementation of policies of the US., and facilitating its policies against Iran to obtain a legal basis, continuing to isolate Iran in the Middle East and eventually overthrow its current government; at the same time, maintain strong US intervention in the Middle East, making Saudi and other countries dependent on the US due to security needs and maintaining US interests in the Middle East.

Autocracies and the temptation of sentimentality: repertoires of the past and contemporary meaning-making in the Gulf monarchies

The scholarly debate on the durability of autocracies is vivid. It has explored a broad spectrum of regime types and respective sources and mechanisms of regime survival. A bias towards the strong effect of material means of regime survival, for example repression, cooptation or output-legitimation, is striking. In resource-rich Middle East and North African (MENA) countries, this has been deeply rooted in the logic of rent economies. Only recently have nonmaterial factors of authoritarian power such as emotional engagement or affective behaviour of the populace gained more prominence in the literature, since autocrats are, for example, increasingly trying to strengthen societal bonds by referring to the past. In order to deconstruct this phenomenon in twenty-first-century autocracies, this article introduces sentimentality as a conceptual approach that allows a more fine-grained analysis of contemporary meaning-making attempts on a national level for the sake of regime survival. We assume three dimensions in which forms and functions of sentimentality can be seen – actors, spaces and media – and provide empirical evidence from the Gulf monarchies.

The role of gender equality in Iranian female tourism entrepreneurs’ success

ABSTRACT Gender (in)equality in entrepreneurship has been getting more attention in recent decades. The number of female entrepreneurs repeatedly reported less than males due to cultural issues, education, and lack of support. Moreover, launching start-up apiaries is more challenging for Asian women in tourism, and the likelihood of unsuccessful experiences is higher among them. Accordingly, the lack of empirical material on female entrepreneurs in tourism and gender equality issues, especially in middle east countries, are the two main gaps. Therefore, this paper tries to reveal the Iranian female entrepreneurship experience to fulfil these gaps. This research applied a qualitative research design leading with social constructivism and critical theory. 12 Iranian female tourism entrepreneurs participated in semi-structured online interviews. The snowball sampling technique was applied to collect data that was analysed thematically. The findings of this study highlighted that family responsibility, legal disparities, credit constraints, and the social construction of gender roles and norms are among the hurdles restricting females from engaging in social and economic opportunities. Moreover, the participants mentioned that the lack of social, government, and sponsors’ support and a platform for training and sharing peers’ experiences impact their businesses.