Impact Of Special Economic Zones On Local Development In Pakistan

The successful experience of developing countries represented by China in the construction of special economic zones(SEZs)has impelled the Pakistani government to establish nine SEZs as an important part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor,including the study area,Allama Iqbal SEZ located in Faisalabad.The construction of special economic zones will inevitably require the acquisition of land from local residents,which directly leads to changes in their livelihoods and affects the local social structure.Since the amount of usable land per inhabitant is already limited in Pakistan,it is necessary to answer whether the construction of special economic zones can promote local economic development and improve the social and cultural status of local residents.However,existing research has discussed more about the opportunities and challenges facing the development of SEZs at the national scale,while ignoring empirical research at the local scale,and less discussing the impact of SEZs based on Pakistan’s special natural geographical environment and cultural history.Considering the late start of the special economic zone policy in Pakistan,this study attempts to make up for the deficiencies of relevant research by analyzing the impact of this policy on land use change,local residents’ life and local economic and cultural development.This study used both qualitative and quantitative data.In order to quantitatively analyze the land use change,this study uses satellite images of the region to make calculations.In order to analyze the impact of land use on local residents,the method of convenience sampling was mainly used to obtain relevant qualitative data,focusing on the experience,feelings and opinions of local residents on the impact of forced land acquisition on their livelihoods.A total of 46 people were interviewed.In order to analyze the impact of land transactions,the study adopted a stratified random sampling method,and a total of 200 people were invited to participate in the questionnaire survey.On this basis,principal component analysis(PCA)was used to establish two sets of socioeconomic data(those who sold agricultural land and those who did not),and the interventions of the two sets of data were compared by independent t-test for two samples result.The results of the study show that the special economic zone has caused significant changes in land use,with a lot of land being converted from agricultural land to industrial land.The conversion of land use has brought problems such as damage to local ecosystems,destruction of species diversity,and polluted water and air increasing the risk of infectious diseases at local level.According to the results of the study,for residents who have sold their land,their socio-economic status has increased along with the increase in income,but this is only temporary because the compensation for land acquisition in SEZs is relatively low.Local residents feel they need other jobs and worry that this accumulation by dispossession caused by land acquisitions could lead to their total displacement from the area.However,the construction of the special economic zone has also brought a lot of positive effects on the local residents.Before the establishment of the special economic zone,local residents were all engaged in agricultural-related work,but now due to the popularization of industry,local economic activities are more balanced.In addition,by attracting foreign capital and providing jobs,it has limited local uneven growth and attracted immigrants from surrounding less developed areas such as South Punjab.The uniqueness and value of this study are mainly reflected in the following three aspects:1.Different from the previous research which only focused on the impact of the construction of special economic zones on the economy at macro(national)level,this study attempts to study these impacts on socioeconomic status of local residents at the micro(local)level.2.In methodology of this study,quantitative and qualitative research methods are used comprehensively,and an in-depth empirical analysis is carried out.3.This study pays special attention to the influence of natural geographical conditions and social and cultural environment on the policy of special economic zones.The land use change caused by the special economic zone policy has had an intricate impact on the local economic and social development.It is recommended to further study the impact of the special economic zone policy on the unbalanced development of Pakistan.