079 - Krysta Fox: Free Zones. Past, Present & Future

Economic Zones, D.M.C.C. , Dubai Multi Commodities Centre, China, Shenzhen, Ireland, Shannon Free Zone, Kenya, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, SEZs. Timothy Allen talks with Krysta Fox This week we’re back in the U.A.E. with another excellent conversation from our SEZ filming trip. Krysta Fox has a long and illustrious business career, but the part we were interested in was her six year position as executive director of Dubai’s DMCC - (Dubai Multi Commodities Centre) a very well known and hugely successful free zone. As a consequence, Krysta has a lot to say about free zones and what makes them tick. She’s also a wealth of information on the past and present of zones with many examples and predictions for the future especially with regard to their residential component… something that we at the FCF are obviously very interested in. Enjoy the conversation. Contact the podcast. email: [email protected] Make a small weekly donation to support the show: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.patreon.com/FreeCitiesPodcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Free Cities Telegram Community: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://t.me/+im6c6r4jQkUzMjU0⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LIBERTY IN OUR LIFETIME CONFERENCE: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://libertyinourlifetime.org/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ TIMESTAMPS (0:30) Introduction. (3:54) Dubai's economic zone evolution from logistics to innovation hub. (8:26) What makes an economic zone successful? (16:14) Attracting Chinese companies to Dubai, with focus on infrastructure and partnerships. (21:12) Using special economic zones to test government policies and attract investors. (35:20) Identifying industries for economic development and growth. (40:19) Economic zones' evolution, governance, and autonomy. (48:02) Regulatory frameworks for economic zones, with a focus on consistency and interoperability. (52:59) What are the next innovations in free zones? What is the trend? (58:36) Economic zones in China, including government-run and privately-run zones, with a focus on innovation and infrastructure. (1:05:59) Factors leading to failure in developing economic zones, importance of aligning with host country's intentions and offering unique value propositions. (1:10:42) Economic zones and their development strategies in various countries. SOCIAL MEDIA: Krysta Fox: https://www.linkedin.com/in/krystafox~adviserstrategybusinessleadership/ Timothy Allen: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/MrTimothyAllen⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Free Cities Foundation: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/freecitiesfound⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ OTHER LINKS: Krysta at Chengeosity: https://changeosity.com/who-we-are/#Krysta-Fox Free Cities Foundation: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://free-cities.org/⁠