Author(s): Iffat Sabir Chaudhry and Rene Y. Paquibut
Young Omani women are becoming empowered and are changing Omani society, congruent to the desire of the government to empower them to contribute to the country’s economy. Although the patriarchal society’s expectations on women’s role remain and women still live up to those expectations, they are engaging in productive activities. This paper describes the characteristics of women micropreneurs, the businesses they engage in, their contribution to the economy and future plans, and the challenges they face. Young Omani women are getting educated on social media allowing them to engage in online businesses while performing their traditional duties at home. However, they face several barriers in managing their business, foremost of which is the lack of access to the market. Further, their responsibilities at home compete for the amount of time they can spend online. Additionally, while the young women are open to the use of social media, they lack competency in social media marketing, among others.