Mapping the Brazilian Reality in the Development of Special Economic Zones

Abstract

Special Economic Zones (SEZs) have emerged as very popular instruments of economic policy, aiming to create conditions to attract investment and offset the weaknesses of the business environment in developing countries. Despite being a very applied economic policy, there are few studies that analyze this phenomenon in a systematic and deep way, especially in the Brazilian scenario. Therefore, the following research objectives were established (1) to map the Brazilian reality in relation to the development of SEZs and (2) to map the scientific studies that involved SEZs and Brazil. The analyses demonstrated that Brazilian SEZs are concentrated in the North and Northeast regions of the country, especially the Manaus Free Trade Zone. The implementation of this type of policy in Brazil has great influence from the state and actions of the legislative branch. However, there are obstacles that compromise a more effective outcome of this policy and that need to be removed in order to allow a more integrated impact on the territory.