Special Economic Zones in the OIC Region:

Learning from Experience

Lessons Learnt from SEZ Case Studies

Whilst the previous sections have focused on developing a broad overview of the state and

performance of SEZs both internationally and across the OIC Member Countries, this section

presents the findings and analysis of a detailed review of six major and successful zones within

four OIC Member Countries and two non-OIC Member Countries.

The four OIC case studies are represented within each of the main OIC regions; Africa, Asia and

Arab Groups. Two case studies fromOIC Member Countries, namely Malaysia and Morocco have

been investigated as field visits, while other case studies from OIC Region, namely Nigeria and

Jordan and Non-OIC case studies, Singapore and Ethiopia have been analysed through desk

studies.

5.1

Methodology

The detailed case study examples have been compiled through a combination of desktop study

and site visits. The site visits were used to gain qualitative and qualitative data from the

following key stakeholders (where possible):



Investors;



Investment Promotion Agencies;



Government;



SEZ Developers;



SEZ Regulators; and



SEZ Operators.

Interviews with key relevant stakeholders were undertaken as part of the case study site visits

and focused on the key themes and questions outlined within Annex I. Data was collected

through interviews and perspectives on key challenges and success factors were explored to

offer detailed insights into lessons learnt. The findings of these interviews are presented within

each of the field visit case studies in this section.

A number of desk based case studies have also been undertaken drawing upon existing

databases of benchmarking data, professional experience and knowledge and publically

available research material.

The following table outlines those case studies which have been identified for the purpose of

this report. These case studies were selected based on their geographical location within each

of the OIC’s three regional groups; Arab, Africa and Asia. In addition, based on the consultants

expert knowledge and discussions with World Bank colleagues these zones were judged to

represent successful cases for analysis to determine lessons learnt and best practice amongst

OIC Member Countries. Additionally, zones such as Tanger Med Zone, Aqaba and Lekki Free