Special Economic Zones Act, 2014 (Act No. 16 of 2014)Chapter 5 : Designation of Special Economic Zones23. Application for designation |
| (1) | National government, a provincial government, a municipality, a public entity, a municipal entity or a public-private partnership, acting alone or jointly, may apply to the Minister in the form and manner prescribed for a specified area to be designated as a Special Economic Zone. |
| (2) | In its application, the applicant must demonstrate that the designation of the area as a Special Economic Zone will further national government’s industrial development objectives and must specify the extent to which the designation seeks to— |
| (a) | achieve the provisions of section 4(2); |
| (b) | be consistent with any applicable national policies and laws; and |
| (c) | comply with any other prescribed criteria. |
| (3) | The applicant must— |
| (a) | have sufficient access to financial resources and expertise for the development, operation, management and administration of a Special Economic Zone; |
| (b) | submit to the Minister a comprehensive feasibility study; |
| (c) | indicate the extent to which it owns or controls the area to be considered for designation as a Special Economic Zone; and |
| (d) | in the case of a public-private partnership, indicate its ownership structure through the submission of a shareholders’ agreement, indicating shareholding, percentages of shareholding, requirements for transfer of shares and requirements for the distribution of assets upon liquidation or deregistration. |
| (4) | The Advisory Board must— |
| (a) | consider the application; and |
| (b) | recommend to the Minister whether or not the area is suited to be designated as a Special Economic Zone. |
| (5) | The Advisory Board may request further information and documents from the applicant for the purposes of considering the application. |
| (6) | The Minister, after considering the recommendation of the Advisory Board and after consultation with the Minister of Finance— |
| (a) | may designate an area as a Special Economic Zone by notice in the Gazette with or without conditions; and |
| (b) | must issue the applicant with a Special Economic Zone licence if the area is so designated. |
| (7) | Before designating an area as a Special Economic Zone, the Minister must— |
| (a) | publish his or her intention to do so in the Gazette for public comments; and |
| (b) | give the public 30 days to make written comments on his or her intention to designate. |