INTRODUCTION The concept of special economic zones is very popular among developing countries as it provides the opportunity for national players to compete internationally with other countries. It also plays a catalytic role in helping countries export new products and find new markets, and in building the image of countries' products in the international market. Special economic zones are where “industrial zones with special incentives attract foreign investors where imported materials undergo a certain degree of processing before being exported again. The rationale behind these zones was to create an area where national policies do not hold and where, therefore, a government could implement policies designed to allow individual businesses to invest profitably based on the comparative advantage of a village". (SAWKUT, VINESH, & SOORAJ, 2009) Previously, special economic zones were known as export processing zones (EPZs) or free ports. Some authors have used both terms interchangeably while others such as UNCTAD (1994) cited in (WEI, December 2000) explain that “the biggest difference between EPZs and SEZs is that EPZs are usually located in countries with a market, while SEZs are typically in an economic transition from a planned economy to a market economy”. economic growth by adopting different strategies. This push was heavily motivated by import substitution. In order to reduce or eliminate the import of foreign industrial goods, domestic production was encouraged by protecting the main...... middle of paper ......novation, Volume 7, Number 2, 199-221.GE , W. (1999). Special economic zones and the opening up of the Chinese economy: some lessons for economic liberalization. World Development Vol. 27, No. 7, , 1267-1285. Subrahmanian, K.K., & Pillai, P.M. (August 26, 1978). Multinational Enterprises and Export Processing Zones. Economic and political weekly, vol. 13, no. 34, 1473-1477.WEI, X. (December 2000). ACQUISITION OF TECHNOLOGICAL CAPABILITY THROUGH SPECIAL ECONOMIC ZONES (SEZ): THE CASE OF SHENZHEN SEC. Industry and Innovation, Volume 7, Number 2, 199-221. Wong, K.-Y., & Chu, D. K. (1984). Export processing zones and special economic zones as generators of economic development: the Asian experience. Geografiska Annaler. Series B, Human Geography, vol. 66, n. 1; Published by: Blackwell Publishing on behalf of the Swedish Society of Anthropology and Geography , 1-16.