Intergenerational Foresight 2026

REGIONAL CONTEXT Growth with persistent asymmetries Entrepreneurship across the Middle East and North Africa has expanded rapidly over the past decade. Yet structural inequalities continue to shape which institutions are seen, funded and supported. Opportunities remain concentrated among a narrow set of actors and geographies, leaving significant pools of talent underrecognized and underfunded. One clear signal is the gender financing gap (Figure 1).8 Women-led small and medium-sized enterprises face one of the largest funding gaps globally, estimated at nearly $16 billion. In countries such as Iran, Oman and Saudi Arabia, women account for more than 50% of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) graduates while receiving just 1.2% of regional venture capital.9 This disconnect highlights a systemic failure to translate human capital into opportunity. MENA Investments in H1 2025 by Gender FIGURE 1 Geographic disparities further reinforce these patterns. In H1 2025, Saudi Arabia captured roughly 40% of all regional venture capital funding10, approximately $750 million, while Egypt received about $25 million and Iraq received less than $100,000. Founders operating outside major hubs face reduced visibility, limited access to accelerators and procurement channels and fewer opportunities to build investor relationships. These dynamics constrain cross-border circulation of innovation and reinforce uneven ecosystem development.$1.8B / 261$149M / 40$129.7M / 27 $248K / 6 Male Mixed Female UndisclosedInvestments breakdown by Gender $2.1B invested across 334 deals Source: Wamda Intergenerational Foresight: An Approach for Long-Term Responsibility in Governance 16