Conference
Search Abstracts
Palestinian Migrant Women Entrepreneurs: Opportunities and Challenges in Exile
Haya Al-Dajani, Norwich Business School
Susan Marlow, De Montfort University
Aim: An identification and analysis of the experiences, opportunities and challenges faced by exiled self employed Palestinian migrant women operating in Amman, Jordan.
Methods/Findings: As this study focused on the experiences of women, a longitudinal feminist research methodology was applied. Data was collected from semi-structured in-depth interviews, undertaken with four Palestinian migrant women entrepreneurs operating within the traditional embroidery sector and employing at least ten home-based Palestinian migrant women embroiderers. Overall, the business opportunities for the respondents grew from a realisation that although there were an abundance of traditional embroiderers, given the influx of Palestinian refugees, the traditional embroidery market was limited and characterised by poor quality products. The challenges therefore, lay in re-creating this market sector and defining its socio-political significance and value, as well as profit potential. Issues of social inclusion were also identified as particularly challenging.
Implications: Palestinian migrant women entrepreneurs contribute to the socio-economic development of the Middle East region in several ways; firstly, by creating employment opportunities for a population that continues to be invisible within international development agendas. Secondly, by addressing issues of social inclusion within host communities, and thirdly, by maintaining the presence of a traditional skill that is deeply rooted in the socio-political heritage of this group. Since 2008 marks the 60th anniversary of the Palestinian ‘Nakbeh’ (Arabic word meaning catastrophe, referring to 1948 when the state of Israel was created on Palestinian land, forcing hundreds of thousands of Palestinians into exile), policy makers and academics are discussing the status of Palestinians dispersed throughout the Middle East. This paper makes a notable contribution to this debate.
This paper presents a discussion and analysis of the entrepreneurial spirit of female Palestinian migrants and how self employment influences their experiences of social inclusion within Jordan. Generally, women’s entrepreneurial activities in the Middle East have been neglected rendering their contributions to local and national economies largely invisible. Accordingly, this paper offers new insights into the experiences, challenges and ambitions of self employed Palestinian migrant women within Amman, Jordan.
Key Words: migrant women, entrepreneurship, Middle East region
2008, Belfast
