Breaking the glass ceiling for women entrepreneurs in MENA is a much harder task compared to their counterparts in other parts of the world. Women-led businesses make up less than 5% of MENA’s total businesses, compared to a global average of 23% to 26%, according to the United Nations Industrial Development Organization. However, they are still establishing businesses, raising capital, and overcoming global crises.

Forbes Middle East’s list of 50 Women Behind Middle Eastern Brands 2023 features six brand categories: fashion, beauty, jewelry, accessories, footwear, and perfumes. Fashion brands dominate the list with 30 entries, followed by eight beauty brands and five jewelry brands. The female founders hail from 21 different nationalities. Egyptian and Lebanese founders top the list with 14 entries each, followed by four Saudis. The majority of the brands are based in the U.A.E., with 20 entries, followed by ten Lebanon-based brands and seven based in Egypt. This year, we also wanted to shed light on the female founders of Arab roots who have established strong brands outside of the MENA region. Therefore, we have included three U.K.-based brands and one U.S.-based brand whose founders come from Arab origins.

Our list of 20 Women Behind Middle Eastern Tech Brands 2023 sheds light on the female founders who have established strong tech-enabled platforms. They represent 12 of the industry’s most prominent and vital sub-sectors, including fintech, e-commerce, logistics, agri-tech, healthtech, proptech, and more. The U.A.E. tops the list as the preferred home for these companies with 11 entries, followed by Egypt and Saudi Arabia with three and two respectively. Jordanians dominate the list with four founders, followed by Egyptians, British, and Turkish, each with two founders. Some of these female trailblazers are leading some of the region’s most funded startups, such as Rita Huang Zhen of iMile, Derya Baran of RedSea, Nadine Mezher of Sarwa, and Fatma El Shenawy of Khazna Tech.