The global map of production is being redrawn. Supply chains, once optimised for cost and scale, are now being recalibrated for resilience, proximity and predictability. In this new order, special economic zones (SEZs) have re-emerged as critical instruments of industrial policy.

Worldwide, between 5,000 and 7,000 zones operate across roughly 140 economies, supporting up to 100 million direct jobs and accounting for as much as a fifth of global exports. The Caribbean, with an estimated 300-plus zones across 16 jurisdictions, is firmly part of this ecosystem. Yet it remains underleveraged.

Nowhere is this tension between participation and potential more evident than in Jamaica. The island has the essential ingredients—proximity to North America, established logistics infrastructure and a functioning SEZ regime—but has yet to translate these into scale in manufacturing exports. The question is how Jamaica chooses to position itself within an increasingly regionalised global economy.