Free zones are a proven development tool Wednesday April 21 2021 At a time when the global economy is facing a confluence of threats such as the unprecedented Covid-19 pandemic, an escalation of trade disputes, an abrupt tightening of global financial conditions and intensifying climate risks, the global policy climate for trade and investment has not been as kind as it was in the heydays of export-led growth and development. Yet the need to attract investment, support industrialisation and promote exports, economic diversification and structural transformation is as great as ever for developing countries, including Uganda. It is in this context that several countries have adopted free zones as an industrial policy and a response to this increasing competition for internationally mobile investment and offered attractive fiscal and non-fiscal incentives and infrastructure within those geographically delineated areas to win the investment.