Special Economic Zone: Performance, Lessons Learned, and Implication for Zone Development | Land Portal

Resource information

Date of publication: 
April 2008
Resource Language: 
Pages: 
83
License of the resource: 
Copyright details: 
Copyright © 2008

This paper examines 30 years of experience in zones, reviewing development patterns and economic impacts of zones worldwide. The experience shows that while zones have been effective in addressing economic growth and development objectives, they have not been uniformly successful; successes in East Asia and Latin America have been difficult to replicate, particularly in Africa, and many zones have failed. Moreover, since the onset of zone development in developing countries, concerns have been raised about the impact of zones on employment(in terms of gender, wage levels and benefits, workerrights and work conditions), the environment, and related social factors.

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The World Bank is a vital source of financial and technical assistance to developing countries around the world. We are not a bank in the ordinary sense but a unique partnership to reduce poverty and support development.

Publisher(s): 

The World Bank is a vital source of financial and technical assistance to developing countries around the world. We are not a bank in the ordinary sense but a unique partnership to reduce poverty and support development.

Data provider

NRMC is a technical and managerial advisory firm in the development sector that provides evidence-based solutions for sustainable, equitable and inclusive development. 


Established in 2004, NRMC is engaged in creating impactful solutions that make a difference to the society. We achieve results at scale by catalyzing partnership with clients and communities. We believe in ethical business, nurturing talent to be courageous to push the limits of knowledge and discovering new ways of doing things.


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