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Introduction
On November 2010, the Gender and Public Policy Program at the Dubai School of Government (DSG), partnered with Al-Sayedah Khadijah Bint Khuwailid Businesswomen Center and Monitor Group to present the panel discussion "Growing Aspirations: Supporting Women's Entrepreneurship in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf," with the recently published report Businesswomen in Saudi Arabia: Characteristics, Challenges, and Aspirations in a Regional Context as a backdrop. The panellists and representatives for the round-table are from the report authors and a panel of prominent business leaders and experts from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The programme provided a vibrant forum for a research-driven intra-regional discussion on women's entrepreneurship in the Gulf, the aspirations of female entrepreneurs and businesswomen in the region, and the challenges facing them and the growth of their businesses. This paper will summarise the key points of the findings of these reports, which provided the audiences with a unique perspective of environment women entrepreneurs, its characteristics and business profiles in the Arabia context in general, and Saudi in particular. The purpose of the study was:
to bolster understanding of the business and regulatory environment for Saudi Arabia's businesswomen;
to contextualise the situation of Saudi female entrepreneurs by creating a meaningful comparison between them and other female entrepreneurs in the region; and
to identify and address the business challenges these women face in order to establish a more supportive environment.
Research methodology
A note on research methodology: in order to ensure that all questions were answered completely and accurately, a face-to-face survey (through references and snowballing techniques) of 202 registered businesswomen and 62 unregistered businesswomen with varying levels of experience in Jeddah, Riyadh, and the Eastern Province (Dammam and Al-Khobar) was conducted in 2009. In addition, 50 prospective businesswomen who were in the process of starting their businesses were interviewed as a comparative sample. The questionnaire focused on three key areas for business formation: starting, managing, and expanding a business.
The following is a summary of the most important findings related to the characteristics of the women and their businesses, their economic contributions, the challenges they are facing, and the recommendations they would make to policy makers in their country. A complete study report - including executive summary from the study, the complete...