World Special Economic Zone

Special economic zones are typically created in order to facilitate rapid economic growth by leveraging tax incentives to attract foreign investment and spark technological advancement. While many countries have set up special economic zones. China has been the most successful in using SEZs to attract foreign capital.

More than 1,000 zones were created in the last five years, and at least 500 more are in the pipeline for the coming years.

A new wave of industrial policies and increasing competition for international investment has sparked a boom in the establishment of special economic zones (SEZs), according to UNCTAD’s World Investment Report 2019.

The global tally of zones has increased to nearly 5,400, up from 4,000 five years ago, and more than 500 new SEZs are in the pipeline.

The industrial zones, which offer fiscal incentives and streamlined regulations to attract foreign direct investment (FDI), are common in most developing and many developed economies. More than 145 economies operate such zones today.