Free Trade Zones in UAE and Economic Development Research Paper

Free Trade Zones in UAE and Economic Development - Research Paper Example These areas are very advantageous to traders and manufacturers in various industries, since there are fewer barriers to trade in these zones than in areas that are not free trade zones. The first Free Trade Zone was established in a small rural town in Ireland to reduce the rate of unemployment in the town, to utilize the airport that was mostly being underutilized in the town, as well as to generate revenue for the Irish government (Brzuzy and Lind, 2007). This was in the early 20th century, and since then due to its colossal success, many more FTZ’s have cropped up throughout the world, mostly in developing countries. One of the main aims of establishing FTZ’s was to create employment opportunities, especially for locals in the area around the FTZ’s and also to generate income for governments. Toward this end, the employment rules governing the FTZ’s are a little different from those governing those companies that do not fall under FTZ. Firstly, corporat ions operating in the FTZ’s usually discourage their employees from joining or forming trade unions. Workers who try to do so are usually threatened with dismissals or closure of the companies, hence loss of livelihoods (Perman et al., 2004). FTZ’s are also usually exempt from most countries’ employment laws, mostly using the laws set out by the International Labor Organization, ILO. Most FTZ’s also emphasize that a majority of the workers in the zones be citizens of the host country. However, exceptions are made if there is not enough local labor to be employed by industries in the zone or if there is a need to import people with certain skills that are required by the companies. Furthermore, most corporations in the FTZ’s employ workers on short contract basis of between one and at most 5 years. However, most countries’ legislations require that these companies provide benefits such as medical schemes to their workers despite their contrac t status. One of the most vibrant FTZ’s in the world is the Dubai Media City free zone. As the name suggests, this FTZ is located in the city of Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates in the Middle East. The zone was established in 2001 and is located a few miles from the Dubai International Airport, which serves as the main infrastructure for the traders that visit the zone (BBC News, 2009). As the name suggests, Dubai Media City is a free zone established wit the media as its main trade. In the zone, there are several media hoses, both local and international which carry on their business. The main media activities in the zone include Music, Public Relations, Broadcasting, Publishing, Advertising, Marketing Consultancy, News Agency, Production and Post-production, Research among other media-related activities. Located in over 30,000 square meters of land, the DMC has enviable infrastructure unrivalled in many areas trying to reach its status. Several advantages have been experi enced by the UAE because of the DMC. The first and most obvious is the increase in revenue from the zone; the DMC contributes a substantial amount to the country’s economy. The DMC has promoted the development of infrastructure in Dubai. There has been an influx of media houses from all over