SEZs are driving the industrial boom in the UAE and GCC

SEZs are driving the industrial boom in the UAE and GCC

The global rise and rise of Special Economic Zones (SEZs) such as logistical hubs, free zones and industrial clusters has been remarkable. In the 1980s there were less than 200 worldwide, but today there are more than 7,000 in over 140 countries.

The GCC is at the vanguard of this growth. And with good reason.

Global SEZ competition to attract companies may be fierce, but the geographic advantage GGC countries enjoy at the nexus of the East and West remains as strong as it did centuries ago.

Only now the region connects seamlessly to billions of people via some of the most sophisticated airports, ports, and business-friendly SEZs on the planet.

At present, there are 70 SEZs across the GCC with 47 in the UAE alone. Saudi Arabia and Oman have 10 each, Kuwait four, Bahrain three and Qatar two, but ambitious plans, particularly in the KSA and UAE, will see these numbers soar.

However, when it comes to SEZs it should not just be about quantity.

To my mind, it is essential that these zones deliver win-win solutions for the countries that invest in them as well as the companies that use them.

And that means in return for them delivering fiscal incentives, cost and custom