Breaking Barriers: An In-Depth Examination of Entrepreneurial Policies for People with Disabilities in Oman and the Call for Inclusive Reforms

A structured policy is one of the fundamental requirements in entrepreneurial activities, where its role appears to be in improving the efficiency of a business. Regarding entrepreneurial policy, people with disabilities are willing to have a policy that secures their rights to run their own established businesses. In Oman, there is no structured policy designed to facilitate the role of disabled entrepreneurs. The study's primary objective is to analyze the current policies, procedures, and programs that support people with disabilities to become entrepreneurs. The study also aims to define the perceptions of disabled people toward the current guidelines and policies regarding empowering them in the entrepreneurial aspect. In addition, the study investigates the possibility of establishing a database for disabled entrepreneurs in Oman. The primary data was collected in various ways. The first method is focused group discussion, conducted with some specialized people at the Directorate General for Disabled Affairs and disabled entrepreneurs categorized as self-employed. The second primary data is the official governmental document published by the Ministry of Social Development and demographic data of people with disability in the National Center for Statistical Information. The expected outcome of the study is valuable for authorized institutions in modifying their role in assisting people with disability to establish their businesses through issuing supportive policies, procedures, and programs. The result clearly showed that disabled entrepreneurs consider the current entrepreneurial policies as fragmented and ineffective.