Palestine’s Startup Community: An Outsider (turned Insider) Experience

In the bustling cafes of Ramallah, I found solace in the quaint spaces that fueled the local startup ecosystem and brought communities of entrepreneurs together.

I left behind a cushy lifestyle in Switzerland to embark on a new journey. I would set off to Palestine, where I would pivot my career trajectory to a new realm of opportunity. One considerably different, yet more personally fulfilling than my previous undertaking in the field of policy. Taking a deep dive, I fully immersed myself in the startup ecosystem that was slowly emerging in Palestine - a place so foreign to me as a child, yet so innate and familiar as an adult.

My new role, entailed a remote work environment, something I always viewed as quite enticing. Who could blame me? The no headache mornings of having to decide on what to wear, how to look presentable and when to clock-in were obviously my big selling points. And, having previously worked in a bureaucratic milieu, I felt a sense of freedom from the restrictive chains of the conventional office environment.

But, with this new sense of freedom, a sudden feeling of isolation transpired. The extrovert in me wasn’t adapting well to its new, domestic work habitat. The confining fortifications within my own home were debilitatingly isolating.

Albeit a short phase, I decided I was completely free to work from wherever I saw fit. Not confined to mundane offices or solitude, I had the ability to work under my own terms, in my element. But what was my element?

Fast forward to the tranquilizing aroma of early morning coffee being brewed at Zamn Coffee House, in Ramallah. The hullabaloo of people shifting to their early work days and the cafe’s regulars setting up shop, prompting the start of the work day. The regulars, to my own surprise, were quite thrilled to interact with a newbie. And so my journey began.

Nomadically shifting my workspaces to suit my weekly preference, I would come across an array of inspirational individuals working on prolific entrepreneurial ventures. One entrepreneur, introducing me to another, and I found myself entangled in a web full of promising, spirited entrepreneurs I never knew existed - all excited to share with me their startup tales.

At the communal dining table at Vintage - a trendy, hipster cafe with a vintage-feel [as the name implies], I candidly socialized with like-minded individuals happy to share the gist of their work with me.  Strategically located in Ramallah’s downtown district - Vintage was the perfect place for me to meet with cool startup founders sporadically passing by for a change of scenery from their usual workspaces.

And, when Gloria Jean’s Coffees made its way to Ramallah, you could bet your bottom dollar that I’d be one of the first in line to test the coffee quality and decide if the space passed the test as a potential new workspace. By the time of its opening, I had built a considerable network of entrepreneurs, who made these makeshift ’workspaces’ feel more and more like home.

I transiently modified my workspaces weekly, if not daily, completely aware of the startup founders I might bump into. To my pleasure, conveniently bumping into the startups allowed me to catch up on their progress, gain new insights on their work and the markets they aimed to penetrate (all the while deliberating planned modes of action).

Interestingly, these encounters helped me build rapport with my family of entrepreneurs. I developed a newfound sense of empathy towards them and their ventures - which were constantly being put to the test. Predisposed to failure, ventures in Palestine face a number of impediments accompanied with operating under unique political conditions.

While most of the startup stories were full of passion and enthusiasm, feelings of uncertainty and an inherent need for guidance and support were distinct among the vast majority. More starkly distinct however, were the startup stories stemming from Gaza. To my misfortune, the barriers that would disconnect me from the passion projects in Gaza, were clearly palpable. But thankfully, due to the receptiveness of the budding community of entrepreneurs in Gaza, I was able to create invaluable relationships, through various means of communication [all praise to technology] with individuals I now deem my family. Some of whom I’ve never had the chance to meet in person and sadly, may never meet. BUT, thankfully, through our work at MENACatalyst Foundation, we try to be as inclusive as possible of our startup community in Gaza. So we put our heads together and partnered up with Gaza Sky Geeks, who are doing amazing work with startups in Gaza. With their help, we were able to bring out 5 entrepreneurs from Gaza to participate in two of our International Demo Events (in the UAE) - which I believe to be a huge accomplishment! I need not mention the effort it took these entrepreneurs to travel from Gaza and the entire process leading up to their trip, which was no simple undertaking. But building these connections meant everything. 

Having had the honor to work with all these talented entrepreneurs, listening to their compelling stories and learning about their experiences was, to say the least, inspiring. The level of passion, grit and unwavering resolve that Palestinian entrepreneurs exemplify is profoundly uplifting and admirable, and I feel greatly fortunate to have met them.

Finally, while my entrepreneurial exploration in Palestine is currently in intermission, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all the entrepreneurs that openly shared their stories with me and let me in. May you and your ventures achieve ultimate success.