On 06 July 2026, the Trade, Industry and Competition Minister said he had been encouraged by the findings of a comprehensive World Bank study on the country’s Special Economic Zones (SEZ) Programme.
The study established that South Africa has the infrastructure, legal framework and institutional capacity to build a world-class SEZ programme.
The study draws on surveys from all 12 SEZs nationwide, interviews with provincial government representatives and SEZ businesses, administrative data from the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (the dtic), the National Treasury, the South African Revenue Service (SARS) and international case studies from China, India, Jordan, Poland and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
“As the government, we are encouraged by the outcomes of this study. It has confirmed the impressive progress that we have achieved in the roll-out of the programme, as well as the hugely positive impact that it has made on the economy of the country in general, and the provinces where they are located in particular,” says the minister.
“The fact that a revenue of R14.8 billion has been generated by the SEZs that are operational, and more than 30,000 jobs have been created, speaks volumes for the capacity and potential of the programme to contribute immensely to the country’s economic growth, transformation and industrialisation,” the minister added.
The minister further stressed that the study’s importance lay in its findings and recommendations, which the department will critically review with a view to implementing them to expand the programme and increase its impact.
“The study has identified various areas of improvement and recommendations, which we need to thoroughly analyse and consider implementing in line with the Revised SEZs Implementation Model, which is part of our Spatial Industrial Development Strategy.”
Other recommendations include:
- Establishing a formal five-year intervention framework for underperforming zones.
- Extending the 15% Corporate Income Tax rate to all SEZs.
- Designating private-sector industrial parks within all SEZs using the Dube TradePort model.
- Formalising municipal service-level agreements across the network.
- Accelerating build-to-let mixed-use complexes to attract SME tenants.
- Formalising the SEZ Fund with distinct infrastructure and top-structure pathways.
“We have already designed various interventions that we have prioritised for this financial year, some of which are in line with the recommendations of the study. These are going to result in more SEZs being designated, more investments flowing into the SEZs, more jobs being created and more small businesses being created in and around the SEZs,” the minister concluded.