Situated in the Gulf – a region that overall saw the highest provision of informal investment – Qatar’s economy is one that has skyrocketed over the past ten years, which has been lending itself well towards growth of entrepreneurial opportunities. Also scoring 5.7 on the NECI, Qatar was one of just four economies globally – and of two on this list – where female entrepreneurs were found to outnumber their male counterparts.

Improvements year-on-year from 2021 have been attributed by the study to improvements in the assessed quality of seven of the 13 Framework Conditions. The conditions that saw the largest boosts between 2021 and 2022 were Social and Cultural Norms (up to 6.7), and for Ease of Entry: Market Dynamics (up to 6.0). Meanwhile, for entrepreneurial activity, 11 per cent of adults invested in someone else’s new business in 2022.

Though it saw the largest decrease in total entrepreneurial activity (TEA), the country has continued to prove fruitful in terms of business outlets, with Qatar being among just three other economies – one of which is also on this list – where total entrepreneurial activity among non-graduates was greater than that of graduates.