Single SEZ and TEDA: two models compared

Abstract

This essay examines the Italian Single Economic Zone (SEZ) and Albanian TEDA regulations from a comparative legal perspective, analysing their nature, legal sources, and implications for domestic and European law. After a reconstructive overview of the historical evolution of SEZs and the definitional complexity resulting from the lack of a unified international definition, the paper delves into the legal, economic, and institutional elements that characterise these industrial policy instruments. In Italy, the establishment of the Single Economic Zone (SEZ) is an attempt to rationalise a fragmented system by concentrating tax breaks, simplified authorisations, and centralised governance in a single area. However, regulatory issues remain unresolved, such as the lack of comprehensive regulation and the failure to include sustainability objectives. However, the analysis of the Albanian framework highlights a more flexible model, in which TEDAs, despite presenting themselves as more legally flexible institutions, have not yet achieved operational effectiveness due to infrastructural deficiencies, administrative uncertainty, and limitations in their ability to attract investment. The comparison highlights how the two legal systems, although operating within different constraints and objectives, share common challenges: ensuring regulatory stability, strengthening governance, and orienting special zones toward sustainable growth and integration with the local economy. Finally, the question is raised as to whether SEZs can be seen not only as tools for attracting investment, but also for territorial rebalancing and innovation, emphasising the need for coherent, long-term policies to translate these ambitions into concrete results.