A new study by the Business and Technology Incubator at Al-Quds University (BCITE), under the Youth Economic Empowerment in Palestine (YEP) project, implemented in partnership with Enabel, Belgian agency for international cooperation and funded by the EU. Finds that Palestinian youth in East Jerusalem are driving a vibrant entrepreneurial scene despite severe political and economic constraints.

The study reveals that entrepreneurship has become one of the few viable paths for financial stability among Jerusalem’s youth. However, young entrepreneurs continue to face major challenges related to the complexity of legal frameworks, difficulties in business registration, and limited access to financing opportunities.

The study deployed a qualitative research design, grounded in two focus group discussions with 55 participants, including 22 young entrepreneurs (12 women and 10 men) and 33 representatives from public, private, and civil society institutions. Discussions centered on the lived experiences of young entrepreneurs navigating Jerusalem’s unique socio-economic and political context.

The assessment found that many young people resort to launching home-based or informal ventures, leveraging their social networks, digital tools, and self-learning to overcome the constraints of a highly restricted labor market. It also revealed that the overlapping Palestinian and Israeli legal frameworks pose a major obstacle to business registration and taxation, limiting opportunities for formal and sustainable enterprise growth.

A clear gap between available funding opportunities and entrepreneurial readiness continues to exists with many young people pursue grants without having fully developed business models. Importantly, the evidence indicates a severe shortage of enabling infrastructure, particularly for technology-based ventures in addition to weak internet services and limited access to co-working and training spaces.

Underscoring the lack of meaningful youth participation in entrepreneurship policymaking and program design, the study called for integrating young people as active partners in planning, implementation, and evaluation processes to ensure more effective and sustainable outcomes.

Building on these findings, BCITE has integrated a number of recommendations from the study through its startup incubation program under the YEP project, implemented in partnership with Enabel, Belgian agency for international cooperation and funded by the EU. This includes enhancing mentorship networks in Jerusalem, increasing seed-funding amounts, and co-designing the support and training programs provided with the entrepreneurs themselves.

Moving forward, the incubator seeks to continue to access to finance and infrastructure and strengthen institutional coordination to foster a more inclusive and resilient entrepreneurial ecosystem in Jerusalem.