Abstract:
After the failure of import substitution programs many developing countries turned to
export processing zones (EPZs) to promote growth and development through trade.
However, in many instances, the performance of the EPZ model has been disappointing
leaving many to question whether EPZs are good for reform. This dissertation will
examine the institutional factors related to why EPZs emerge. Second, positing that
domestic entrepreneurship is important to economic development, the relationship
between EPZs and domestic entrepreneurship is examined. Third, it will examine the
effects of EPZs on economic wellbeing controlling for factors which affect
entrepreneurship.
