Human Capital Development, Special Economic Zones, and Dubai as Case Study: a Literature Review

Purpose: This article maps the scholarly conversation on two important topics in the field of economic development: human capital and special economic zones. While these have been studied separately, little work is available on their intersection. Design/methodology/approach: The article is a systematic literature review. It followed the preferred reporting items for systematic review and meta-analysis (PRISMA) criteria. Findings: While human capital development has been largely discussed from the perspective of developed countries, it hasn’t been examined specifically in connection to SEZs. Moreover, there is solid evidence of the positive impact of industrial clusters, suggesting that SEZs that pursue the formation of industrial clusters might have the strongest effect on human capital development. The piece argues the intersection of human development and SEZ establishment is currently a gap in the literature calling for further empirical investigation Originality: The literature review is brought to bear on the experience of the Emirate of Dubai, in order to highlight features of its development history that make it an ideal case study for empirical investigation.