In the Spotlight: Some enterprising women entrepreneurs from Tunisia
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“The Land of Jasmine” – Tunisia, has often been hailed as a beacon of progress in North Africa. It has witnessed a remarkable rise in women entrepreneurs over the past few decades. And, since the 1970s, Tunisian women have been steadily carving their space in the business world, with women-owned firms growing from just 7% in 1992 and continuing to expand over the passing decades. Today, they are no longer confined to traditional roles or small-scale ventures but are increasingly at the forefront of Tunisia’s entrepreneurial landscape.
How Tunisian Women are Redefining Entrepreneurship
Most women entrepreneurs in Tunisia focus on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) – particularly in services, manufacturing, and health-related sectors. Yet, what makes their journey even more inspiring is their growing presence in non-traditional and competitive fields such as – telecommunications, finance, real estate, and technology. In urban hubs like Tunis, their innovation and drive are reshaping industries, showcasing how Tunisian women are merging creativity, sustainability, and business acumen.
However, challenges persist. Cultural and societal norms often limit women’s mobility, while family responsibilities & male-dominated networks pose barriers to growth. Despite these hurdles, Tunisian women entrepreneurs are proving to be resilient. With the support of organizations such as the Women’s Enterprise for Sustainability (WES), coupled with government reforms and increasing international recognition, these women are accessing training, coaching, financial resources & valuable networks.
As societal attitudes shift and the ecosystem for entrepreneurship becomes more inclusive, Tunisian women entrepreneurs are not only creating businesses but also redefining what leadership looks like in a transforming economy.
Here we are now showcasing the talent and power of some enterprising women entrepreneurs from Tunisia.
- Hanna Gharbi – CEO of Henchir El Bey
Hanna Gharbi is a hard-working woman entrepreneur, who is CEO of ‘Henchir El Bey’. She happens to be one of the leaders of eco-tourism, organic farming and besides that, she has also been creating jobs for rural women. Subsequently, it is evident that she has contributed to the Mkachbia region in Béja, which is in the Northern part of Tunisia.
She has admitted that the major challenges that she faces as a woman entrepreneur are – the lack of sharing information and social differences and wealth creation for the region.
- Fardi Yosra, Founder, Fardi
Fardi Yosra is a biotechnologist and Founder of – Ferme pour Alimentation Riche Durable Indoor “FARDI”.
Quite importantly, she is implementing resilient agricultural practices that increase productivity and production, as she strongly believes in creating a better sustainable development. Her hydroponic project is also building capacity to adapt to climate change, extreme weather events and droughts.
As for the challenges that she is facing as a young female entrepreneur she says there is a social stigma, multiple societal responsibilities, lack of recognition and networking and lack of financial support.
- Bayoudh Inés, Co-Founder of the Start-Up Eco-Act
Bayoudh Inés is a young eco-entrepreneur and Co-Founder of the start-up Eco-Act. She aims to put a well-directed strategy to mitigate anthropogenic climate change through Internet of Things software. This technology will help companies reduce their carbon footprints and spread the notion of circular economy and environmental protection to the community.
Entrepreneurs do face blockages on the way. And the main challenges that she faced throughout her journey are – the lack of time, as she found it very difficult to reconcile work and personal, and also access to funding.
- Salma Ben Salah, Founder ofCAMINOVA
Salma Ben Salah is Founder ofCAMINOVA.She is a young entrepreneur, backed by a PhD in Biological Sciences.
She contributes to sustainable economic growth by transforming university technologies into business opportunities, which is a regional development force through the creation of highly skilled jobs. As a woman entrepreneur, she noted what the main challenges were – low integration in business networks (often considered unable to manage a project on its own), and lack of access to finance which blocked opportunities that encouraged women entrepreneurs in Tunisia.
She was part of the second cohort of BRAIN (Bridging Research and INnovation) programme, a pan-African initiative led by Open Startup, which aimed at empowering and supporting scientist-entrepreneurs, dedicated to fostering the foundations of DeepTech in Africa.
- Makki Chaima, Founder, Pépinière Khemir
Makki Chaima is the entrepreneur who founded the startup – ‘Pépinière Khemir’.
What is special about her is that she looks out for a better sustainable development by conservation of nature and the environment, through biological plants and organizing cleaning campaigns in municipalities and forests, to eliminate harmful waste.
One of the main challenges that she has faced as an entrepreneur was trying to convince peasants to use biological plants and move away from chemical fertilizers – to preserve green land and good health.
- Ben Youssef Maryem, Founder, Cheese Ferme De Soleil
Ben Youssef Maryemis the entrepreneur who launched ‘Cheese ferme de soleil’. She believes that for a better sustainable development growth, we need to work on Mediterranean culture, which is an art of being in an ecological environment.
Sharing the challenges that she faced as a woman entrepreneur, she pointed out that it was from balancing the demands of life & work to the lack of equal opportunities in certain sectors.
Avtar Madan
Shree Lahiri
Himanshu
