Performance Evaluation of Free Economic Zones: Implications for Regional Development Strategies

Modern Free Economic Zones (FEZs) are extremely relevant assets of regional development policy, but there is still very limited systematic performance evaluation across countries globally. The main focus of this paper is evaluating the performance of FEZs located in China, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Poland and Uzbekistan, based on a set of composite indicators that include: foreign direct investment (FDI) attraction, export growth, job creation, technology transfer, the quality of infrastructure, and regulatory efficiency. We used a multi-criteria assessment framework along with panel data for the time period of 20182023 in order to analyze performance outcomes for each of the four countries (China, UAE, Poland and Uzbekistan). The findings indicate that both the UAE FEZ and China FEZ performed at significantly higher composite performance levels (8.8 and 8.1 respectively) than the other countries studied as a result of their superior regulatory environments and geographic location relative to other global geographic regions. In contrast, the Navoi FEZ in Uzbekistan has produced early-stage growth, but has not yet achieved comparable composite performance levels (5.1). These results can inform future actions and policies for the governance of FEZs in emerging economies and assist with future regional development planning.

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