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Special economic zones in Southern Africa: Is success influenced by design attributes?

Author

Listed:
  • Cornelius Dube
  • Wellington Matsika
  • Gamuchirai Chiwunze

Abstract

Special economic zones (SEZs) in Africa are generally regarded as underperforming relative to their peers in the rest of the world. This study focuses on the design features of the SEZ in Africa that may help explain this underperformance. Literature was reviewed to identify the key design attributes of SEZ programmes that could enhance their success. A case study of six Southern African countries—Mauritius, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe—is then used to assess if these countries' SEZ programmes meet the ideal design features.

Suggested Citation

  • Cornelius Dube & Wellington Matsika & Gamuchirai Chiwunze, 2020. "Special economic zones in Southern Africa: Is success influenced by design attributes?," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2020-61, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    • Handle: RePEc:unu:wpaper:wp-2020-61
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Olga Sinenko & Igor Mayburov, 2017. "Comparative Analysis of the Effectiveness of Special Economic Zones and Their Influence on the Development of Territories," International Journal of Economics and Financial Issues, Econjournals, vol. 7(1), pages 115-122.
    2. Carol Newman & John Page, 2017. "Industrial clusters: The case for Special Economic Zones in Africa," WIDER Working Paper Series 015, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    3. Jed Kolko & David Neumark, 2010. "Do some enterprise zones create jobs?," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 29(1), pages 5-38.
    4. repec:unu:wpaper:wp2012-85 is not listed on IDEAS
    5. Thomas Farole, 2011. "Special Economic Zones in Africa : Comparing Performance and Learning from Global Experience," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 2268.
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    Cited by:

    1. Neva Makgetla, 2021. "Learning from experience: Special Economic Zones in Southern Africa," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2021-124, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).

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