characteristics, motivations, and challenges of women entrepreneurs ...

Shweta Belwal, Rakesh Belwal, and Fatema Al Saidi mn 135

CHARACTERISTICS, MOTIVATIONS, AND CHALLENGES OF WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS IN OMAN’S AL-DHAHIRA REGION Shweta Belwal, Rakesh Belwal, and Fatema Al Saidi mn

Abstract To organize and manage an enterprise, especially a business, usually with considerable initiative and risk, women entrepreneurs need to undertake various challenges. This paper identifies and discusses the characteristics, motivations, and obstacles of women entrepreneurs in starting their own businesses, focusing on the Al-Dhahira region of Oman. Data were collected through a structured survey questionnaire. The study identified the major characteristics of women entrepreneurs that inspired them to start their businesses. An urge to balance the work and family life, a search for stable work, and an intention to take advantage of a discovered market niche were identified as main motivators. The major difficulties faced by these entrepreneurs were insufficient financial resources and access to external financing. The findings help explain regional imbalances in entrepreneurial activities locally and globally.

Introduction

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his paper identifies the challenges that women entrepreneurs in Oman face because of the duality of modernization vs. tradition, particularly in traditional areas. One of the serious repercussions of this duality is the prevalence of conservative attitudes and dogmas, which promote socio-cultural stereotypes and undermine the role of women Journal of Middle East Women’s Studies Vol. 10, No. 2 (Spring 2014) © 2014

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Journal of Middle East women’s studies 10:2

outside domestic chores (Al-Lamky 1999, Riphenburg 1998). According to Ayman Elnaggar (2007, 7), “Omani socio-cultural norms trap and chain women’s thinking and ability, and limit their mobility, whether they are living in an urban center or a remote rural village.” Entrepreneurial activities are important for the creation of jobs and the reduction of poverty, unemployment, and migration in developing countries, particularly those in transition (Gamage 2003, Mathew 2010, Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry 2006, Singh and Belwal 2008). The coverage of female entrepreneurship is sparse in many Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries and data on female entrepreneurship are literally absent, even in the most popular online Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) database. Our study, though limited to the Al-Dhahira region of Oman, aims to fill some of this gap. The government of Oman has launched some programs such as the Fund for Development of Youth Projects and Self-Employment and National Autonomous Development (SANAD,1 the Arabic word for “support”). In 1995, the Shell Oil Company launched the Intilaaqah2 (the Arabic word for “takeoff”) program in Oman with the objective of providing the right kind of training, counseling, and consultation to young entrepreneurs (Goveas and Aslam 2011). Notwithstanding these efforts, female entrepreneurship in Oman has not developed equally across governorates. While some success is visible in urban areas, rural areas are still trapped by the traditional outlook, which expects women to work at home (Maktabi 2010). According to Nina A. Razzak (2011) women in some Gulf countries gravitate toward home businesses because their extended families and communities are very conservative; although working is not prohibited, working in a mixed-gender environment or even outside of the home is sometimes prohibited (Razzak 2011). In this context, this paper attempts to identify the characteristics, motivators, and hindrances affecting Al-Dhahira women entrepreneurs. Women Entrepreneurs: A Review

Women entrepreneurs have been defined differently by different people (Bruni et al. 2004, Lee-Gosselin and Grisé 2009, Martin and Osberg 2007, Schaper and Volery 2004). However, this paper considers women entrepreneurs as women who initiate, organize, and operate business enterprises.


Middle East and North African (MENA) economies exhibit the lowest proportion (less than one-third) of women entrepreneurs (Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2010). In sharp contrast, a report from the International Finance Corporation (2007, 3) on MENA businesswomen claims, “Women business owners surveyed in MENA are well ahead of their counterparts in Western Europe and North America with respect to the size of their firms and many report substantial levels of revenue.” These contrasts implicate a lack of organized data pertaining to women entrepreneurs and raise concerns about the fallacies of misinterpretation or generalization. Contributions in the form of regional research in different countries are therefore urgently needed. Muhammad A. Sadi and Basheer M. Al-Ghazali (2012, 217) observe that in the Middle East, “There are limited published studies, which explore the business start-up motivations and obstacles among women.” The International Finance Corporation (2007) report indicates a growing need for survey-based attitudinal information capturing the self-expressed viewpoints, concerns, challenges, and needs of women business owners. The 2011 Global Report on women entrepreneurs notes a low level of participation in Iran, Bangladesh, and Pakistan (Kelley et al. 2012). Since these three countries are governed by Islamic philosophy, one can infer similar challenges typical of Islamic societies. In Saudi Arabia—an extremely conservative society in the Middle East—Hazbo Skoko (2011, 210) finds that “[w]omen are clearly underrepresented as early-stage entrepreneurs.” However, Oman has a significant number of women entrepreneurs, in contrast to other male dominated Arab societies in the GCC countries (Khan et al. 2005). Although no consolidated data are available to justify the claim of Khan et al. (2005), the UN Program on Governance in the Arab Region describes Oman as one of the more progressive states in the Gulf region in the area of women’s rights” (Maktabi 2010). Although women in Oman are encouraged to work shoulder-to-shoulder with their male counterparts (Goveas and Aslam 2011), only a few decide to tread the entrepreneurial route. Women in Oman, including expatriates, comprise 55 percent of the nation’s total work force (MONE 2010). However, Omani women are only 27 percent of the total native workforce, and their relative composition is lower in the private sector (19 percent) than in the government

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sector (37 percent) (Ministry of National Economy 2011). Although not nearly as oil-rich as other members of the GCC, Oman has a high level of education for men and women (Ministry of National Economy 2011, Mukerji and Jammel 2008), emerging just higher than Saudi Arabia in the level of women’s education. According to Asya Al-Lamky (2007), the Omani business landscape was dominated by males in the past, and the broader cultural and social forces in Oman still grant a secondary status to women, socially and economically. Notwithstanding, the situation in Oman is improving with new policies, such as a global education policy and the representation of women in different councils, 3 and other support programs. Consequently, women’s participation in small businesses has improved (Khan et al. 2010). Characteristics that Define Women Entrepreneurs

Different characteristics classify women entrepreneurs in different regions, which, according to Joachim Wagner and Rolf Sternberg (2004), are inf luenced by socio-demographic variables and attitudes. Dale Krueger (2000) observes that females who are assertive, creative, restless, and venturesome are more likely to start businesses. Women observed to hold entrepreneurial traits have prior work experience, confidence in their talent, and skills to perform managerial functions (Lee-Gosslin and Grisé 1990). Thomas Zimmerer and Norman M. Scarborough (2007) identify further characteristics as a sense of responsibility, preference for a moderate risk, confidence in their ability, high level of optimism and energy, desire for immediate feedback, future orientation, organizational skills, and high degree of commitment. According to Skoko (2012), entrepreneurs in Saudi Arabia tend to be younger, better educated, and wealthier than the general population. Motivators that Drive Women Entrepreneurs

Historically, push factors dominated pull factors in triggering female entrepreneurship. While job redundancy, the glass ceiling, economic recessions, financial reasons, and job dissatisfaction act as push factors (Itani et al. 2009), the need for accomplishment and independence, selffulfillment, and social status work as pull factors (Sarri and Trihopoulou 2005). While Krueger (2000) identifies achievement, autonomy, and the


desire to make money as primary motivators for women, R. Ganesan et al. (2002) identify another range of factors: the desire to attain higher social status, to provide employment to others, and to meet the needs of the family, as well as motivation from friends. According to Michael Schaper and Thierry Volery (2004), economic circumstances, social networks, marketing, planning, finance, and even assistance from public agencies are other important motivators. Manuela Pardo-del-Val (2010) points out that women choose the entrepreneurial path to enjoy a flexible lifestyle. This move enables women to cope with the competing demands of paid and unpaid work more effectively, and thus to ensure their responsibility towards both the work and family life (Greene and Cohen 1995, Walker et al. 2008). Pointing a different direction, Hanifa Itani et al. (2009) argue that in the United Arab Emirates, females start their own businesses to escape from domestic and labor market subordination. In a comparative study, women entrepreneurs from Bahrain ranked (in descending order) profit motive, desire to work independently, control and freedom in decision-making, and social status as the major motivators; their Saudi counterparts prioritized self-achievement, desire to work independently, self-confidence, and profit respectively as the major motivators (Sadi and Al-Ghazali 2012). Gerard McElwee and Rahma Al-Riyami (2003) observe that factors such as encouragement, education, and family support have influenced women entrepreneurs positively in Oman. Difficulties/Obstacles for Women Entrepreneurs

Pardo-del-Val (2010) argues that a lack of knowledge, insufficient training and experience, and family responsibilities impose obstacles for women entrepreneurs in Europe. Ganesan et al. (2002) posit that working capital, equity finance, and marketing products are the most difficult areas for women entrepreneurs. Viju Mathew (2010) mentions that, in the Middle East, lack of education, skills, seriousness in undertaking work, exposure and social network along with the social norms and suppressed conditions are major barriers for women. Syed Z. Ahmed (2011) states that finding relevant business information, securing finance, bureaucratic processes and procedures, and recruiting workers are the most important problems encountered by women during startups in Saudi Arabia.

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Businesswomen running startup ventures in Bahrain ranked (in descending order) lack of belief in their abilities, lack of support by the government, lack of market studies, and dominance of market by few investors; their Saudi counterparts prioritized traditional restrictions, lack of market studies, lack of government support, and dominance of market by a few investors respectively as the major barriers (Sadi and Al-Ghazali 2012). In the context of Oman, McElwee and Al-Riyami (2003) argue that the shortage of nurseries, kindergartens, vocational training institutions, employment information, and loans can retard woman’s participation in economic activity. Moreover, the male-dominated society and the lack of family support is an obstacle, especially when female entrepreneurs are not taken seriously by the male members in the society (Al-Sadi et al. 2011, Itani et al. 2009). Methodology

The research was confined to the Al-Dhahira governorate of Oman as no prior studies focus on this region. Al-Dhahira, which lies in central Oman, has three major towns: Ibri, Yankel, and Dank. The focus of this study was confined to these three towns. To achieve the goals of this study, a survey probing women who started their own businesses in the Al-Dhahira region was considered as the most reliable method of collecting data. Though the information about female entrepreneurs in this region was sought from the Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Ibri Branch, it was not fruitful as the Branch Office provided only a figure of 800 registered women, without disclosing the specific details and contacts. Our field visits revealed that out of these registered women, the number of entrepreneurs who had actually set up their business was very low. We, therefore, resorted to a process of snowballing to identify sample respondents. With the help of individual entrepreneurs and a member of the Omani Women Association from Ibri we arrived at a convenience sample of thirty-three active women entrepreneurs whose responses were finally recorded during the survey. Primary data were collected using a structured schedule containing a number of closed and open-ended questions. This schedule was adapted from the questionnaires developed by Pardo-del-Val (2010) and


The Economic Times.4 The questions, which were originally developed in English, were administered in Arabic, as most respondents did not understand English. The questionnaires were piloted on ten undergraduates from the Business Faculty of Sohar University and were later improved using the mechanism of forward and backward translation. Furthermore, two senior academics checked the questionnaire to ensure clarity in expressions and ease of communication. Questions mainly probed issues related to entrepreneurial characteristics, motivators, and obstacles in the local context. Closed-ended questions were recorded mainly using a five-point Likert-type scale and were analyzed using the SPSS statistical package.5 This study faced inevitable limitations. The research covers a limited number of women entrepreneurs who had successfully started their business ventures but none who had failed. Moreover, reviews and discussions indicate a void on entrepreneurship data both regionally and across the Middle East. The GEM database too lacks information on Oman and other GCC countries. Researchers are prone to biases of generalizations or stereotyping. Although certain countries, namely Bahrain, Jordan, Lebanon, Tunisia, and the United Arab Emirates, are reported to have developed a high profile in female entrepreneurship in the Middle East, other countries still struggle to support entry-level entrepreneurs. Studies are needed across and within the GCC countries to fill the existing gap. In their probes, these studies might control for certain variables such as the state of development, the outlook of societies (liberal or conservative), and the region of entrepreneurial activity (urban or rural). Findings and Discussions

Nearly half (45.5 percent) of the respondents reported their age as being between 25 to 32 years; 36.3 percent, more than 33 years; and 18.2 percent, less than 25 years of age. The majority (79 percent) had education to the secondary level. Only 21 percent had education above the secondary level. The majority (57.6 percent) had worked in a corporate establishment before starting up their own business: 72.7 percent worked for five years or less, while 24.2 percent for six to ten years, and 3 percent for eleven to fifteen years. While 63.6 percent had received some sort of in-

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formal or formal mentoring before starting their ventures, 20.3 percent faced problems in establishing their business in the early days. Around 42 percent encountered difficulties in getting funds. These women ran ventures in the areas of services (e.g., beauty parlors, fashion boutiques, home decoration, and information technology), manufacturing, retailing, and outsourcing (e.g., coordinating, planning, and organizing weddings, gift wraps, jewelry sales, and flower decoration) (See Table 1). To more than half of the entrepreneurs “capitalizing on the business idea which they could no longer hold” was the immediate reason for turning into an entrepreneur. However, one-quarter of them were either motivated or helped by friends to set up their ventures (See Table 2). Circumstances Affecting Al-Dhahira Women Entrepreneurs

Other circumstances that significantly encouraged the Al-Dhahira women to become entrepreneurs include confidence in their capabilities, individual efficiencies, acceptance in the society, and difficulty finding jobs. A prior experience in the area of business, a felt responsibility toward the family, and the lack of savings were other but statistically insignificant circumstances. However, these encouragements were not free from hindrances. “Finding family support, qualified staff, finance, organizing work and coordination with the business were the main problems,” claimed one woman. “I faced transportation problems while attending to work,” said another. “One of the offices lost my documents, thereby causing a delay in the startup,” claimed another. A vision toward personal and professional development, a desire to balance work and life, a search for stability, prior professional experience, and an identified market opportunity significantly motivated Al-Dhahira women. “To avoid possible unemployment” and “difficulty in finding a job with acceptable remuneration” were two additional but statistically insignificant reasons. Respondents identified insufficient financial resources and problems of access to external financing as barriers. Further, they disagreed significantly on such factors as a lack of business education, ability to attract clients, personal abilities, knowledge of developing business plans, social and family support, and delay in receiving authorizations. These factors were enablers rather than obstacles. The lack of assistance, support, or subsidies to entrepreneurs together with the lack of


Table 1: Profile of Participants Demographic and Circumstantial Characteristics Frequency and Percentage Frequency Percentage Age group Less than 25 years 6 18.2 Between 25-32 years 15 45.5 Between 33-40 years 8 24.2 More than 40 years 4 12.1 Education Level No education 2 6.1 Primary 7 21.2 Secondary 17 51.5 Higher 7 21.2 Type of Sector Manufacturing 3 9.1 Retail 9 27.3 Service 17 51.5 Outsourcing - Business Process/ Knowledge Process 4 12.1 Worked in a corporate establishment before starting up Yes 19 57.6 No 14 42.4 Number of years worked in corporate establishment 0-5 24 72.7 6-10 8 24.2 11-15 1 3.0 Mentoring received- formal or informal Yes 21 63.6 No 12 36.4 Early problems faced in initial days Yes 10 30.3 No 23 69.7 It was difficult to get funding Yes 14 42.4 No 19 57.6 Number of years running own businesses 0-5 years 20 60.6 5-10 years 6 18.2 More than 10 years 7 21.2

information related to forms, procedures, or a business plan emerged as two additional but not statistically significant obstacles.

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Table 2: Immediate Reason for Becoming an Entrepreneur An incident at work/elsewhere 1 3.0 A meeting with a friend who had started up that motivated 9 27.3 A business idea you could no longer hold back on 17 51.5 Any other reason 6 18.2

Further analysis of open-ended questions revealed that most of the women entrepreneurs established their business with either their own funds or with those of their families. A few were supported by the SANAD project or the Oman Development Bank (against collateral). “I could not find any person in my family to give me financial support or a loan,” said one woman. “Nobody encouraged me at the start, except my father who asked one of his friends to provide me a loan,” said another. Some highlighted the unavailability of organized funds at their doorstep and the procedural delays faced in obtaining them. “The bank could not provide me with funding at the right time,” claimed another woman. “The branches of the Development Bank and SANAD programs are only there in the cities,” said another. “SANAD loans have a maximum limit of OMR 5000, and this amount is nothing in view of the current needs of business,” said other women. “We are afraid of taking loans from the Development Bank as any default in the payback might lead to an encounter with either legal authorities or police,” confided another woman entrepreneur. “Development Banks charge interest at a flat rate of 3 percent on loans beyond OMR 5000,” she added. Women were also hindered by their low level of education, which was below the secondary level for the majority. During the startup, although they got others to develop their business plans for getting the organized loans, they lacked an understanding of the process and management skills in implementing it later. On the socio-cultural front, the situation was not as grim as identified in the literature review. Women entrepreneurs from Ibri denied entirely that they faced any problems due to being female. The women from the rural areas of Yankel and Dank revealed that, although they do not face any major sociocultural constraints, they need to follow the social and cultural expectations of the family and society. “When I started my business, I was looked down by the male members, but I proved them wrong later,” said a women entrepreneur from Yankel.


The women who became entrepreneurs after quitting the corporate sector demonstrated certain characteristics. First, they revealed an urge to break out and implement their own ideas; second, they faced some difficulties in coping with their superiors’ views, which most of the times were contradictory; finally, they had a desire to make more money. A women entrepreneur stated, “At the job, I was unable to take initiatives beyond a certain point, and had to follow a strict hierarchy.” Others felt that their education and experience enabled them to be better planners and more self-dependent, responsible, work-loving, and efficient. For a few, disappointing events in life (e.g., poor performance in studies, inability to find a partner) acted as motivators. “I got fewer marks in ClassX, I decided to become an entrepreneur,” said one entrepreneur; “I was forty years old and unmarried, so I thought of starting a business,” said another. For the rest of the women, factors such as previous experience, a desire to work, a desire for personal improvement, the development of skills, the utilization of free time, and the desire to earn money were additional important motivators. It was difficult to find a common motivator; rather the women offered alternate motivations, such as passion and personal competence, a desire to earn money and establish self-identity, and a desire for good future prospects. The situation of women entrepreneurs from Al-Dhahira is similar to those of Iran, mainly in terms of cultural expectations, business skills, financial barriers, and university representation (Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2010). However, our study indicates that the majority of Omani women who become entrepreneurs have little experience (less than five years) in comparison to that of their Saudi Arabian counterparts (eleven years) (Sadi and Al-Ghazali 2012). This supports earlier findings that the experience of women’s entry in the field of entrepreneurship is relatively new in Oman and has not been free from challenges and difficulties (Al-Sadi et al. 2011). Conclusion

The aim of the study was to determine the characteristics and motivations for women entrepreneurs and to understand the obstacles they faced and their reasons for becoming entrepreneurs. Similar to women entrepreneurs elsewhere, Omani women offer mostly service-oriented

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businesses. The majority of the entrepreneurs relied on the traditional sources of funding, such as support from families. This support can be attributable to culture, religion, and tradition as the society is wellintegrated with strong family and tribal affiliations. Although savings from past years or access to the organized loans from SANAD and Oman Development Bank also helped, most of the female respondents complained about a lack of organized and prompt funding. Women entrepreneurs from the Al-Dhahira region resorted mostly to service-related business, and a majority of them had prior experience in the corporate world. This raises an important question as to what made them become entrepreneurs. “I had to cope with my superiors and was forced to work on ideas that were not in agreement,” said one of the respondents. Most of them started their own businesses as they found it difficult to get jobs elsewhere. A majority of them felt that they had willingness and confidence to work independently and efficiently. Most believed that after launching themselves, they earned acceptance and respect from people as entrepreneurs. These women entrepreneurs shared certain characteristics. The majority of them were between twenty-five and thirty-two years old. More than half had secondary education and had worked in a corporate establishment before. The majority had fewer than five years of prior experience and had taken some form of informal or formal mentoring before starting their businesses. This mentoring came in the form of advice from local role models and personal acquaintances, guidelines from the government, and encouragement from family and institutions. These findings conform to most of the characteristics of women entrepreneurs (namely, age group, perceived opportunities, and confidence in their abilities) as reported by the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (2010) report. A number of factors motivated these women to become entrepreneurs. These motivations include: a vision towards personal and professional development, a desire to balance work and life, a search for stability, prior experience, an identified market opportunity, a timely business idea, motivation from family and friends, confidence in their capabilities, individual efficiencies, acceptance in the society, and difficulty in getting a job elsewhere. Additional motivators include disappointing life events, a desire to work and earn money, a desire to utilize


free time, a passion for a particular work, competence in a particular area, a drive for self-identity, a desire to development of skills, and a search for stability. Additional factors prevented an enables these women to become entrepreneurs. Insufficient financial resources and access to external financing were identified as major barriers. Having some business education, an ability to attract clients, personal abilities, knowledge of developing business plans, social and family support, and timely authorizations emerged as the main facilitators. Recommendations

In light of these findings, Oman needs to consider women as an important resource and provide them with an adequate support to develop their entrepreneurial skills. Social and family support, which emerged as enablers to entrepreneurship, needs to be extended to other females. Awareness and educational programs should be initiated. Branches of financial institutions need to be relocated near the entrepreneurs to provide them with easy and timely access to funds, especially to support these new businesses during the growth stage. Women entrepreneurs need mentoring to help them deal with cultural and religious taboos that may hinder their success. A wider study involving the rest of the governorates in Sultanate of Oman is recommended to encourage a comprehensive nationwide strategy or policy promoting female entrepreneurs in the Sultanate. Endnotes 1. See http://www.omaninfo.com/manpower-and-employment/sanad-fundsupporting-and-developing-small-projects-ministry-manpower.asp (accessed on January 26, 2014). 2. See http://www.intilaaqah.org/ (accessed on January 26, 2014). 3. See http://www.omanet.om/english/government/majlis.asp (accessed on January 25, 2014). 4. The Economic Times questionnaire on entrepreneurship is available at https://groups.google.com/group/headstart-network/browse_thread/thread/ fbe754b0bd3e0ff6?pli=1 (accessed on January 26, 2014). 5. The Likert Scale is used to measure attitudes directly by asking people to respond to a series of statements, in terms of the extent to which they agree with them,

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and so capturing the cognitive and affective components of attitudes. In this study, we used a five-point scale, which allowed respondents to express their agreement or disagreement on a particular statement against five anchors: strongly agree, agree, neutral, disagree, and strongly disagree. Each of the five responses was assigned a numerical value, which was used to measure the attitude under investigation. The data was enumerated into the SPSS® statistical software to arrive at the frequency distributions, measures of central tendencies, and measures of variation. One sample t test was conducted to assess the significance of each statement, which took into account the average score and standard deviation.

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