Bob is the world’s greatest expert on special economic zones or "opportunity zones" as he likes to call them, having worked in setting them up in 174 countries.
Max Borders said about Bob: “I would argue no living human being is responsible for helping lift more people out of poverty than Bob Haywood:”
Bob is notoriously low-key about his work.
This podcast episode together with Max' written 2-part series (part 1, part 2) is a rare look behind the scenes of a trend little understood or noticed in the developed world, but enormously important in the developing world to lift billions out of poverty.
In this episode you'll learn that ...
- Zone developers and governments need to start by defining the problem - why are we not getting the investment we want right now?
- You need a young, energetic local lawyer who knows existing regulations in a country and deeply understands the "code base" to find elegant solutions
- You need to build a coalition of local "second-tier" elites, i.e. not the ones that already are on top who benefit from the existing order
- The keys to a successful zone are predictability, productivity and profitability (3 P's)
- International multilaterals are a problem more than a solution
Ep. 67: Bob Haywood on 50+ Years of Creating Opportunity Zones in 174 Countries, Solution-Oriented Legal Engineering to Achieve China's Economic Miracle, Dubai's Rise & Fighting Poverty