Events Details

MEPZ Special Economic Zone commemorated its 43rd Foundation Day with the launch of the MEPZ Foundation Day Lecture Series, centred on the theme “Future of SEZs: Enabling India’s Next Export Growth Wave.” The inaugural edition brought together two distinguished voices in India’s economic and policy landscape : Dr. V. Anantha Nageswaran, Chief Economic Advisor to the Government of India, and Shri B.V.R. Subrahmanyam, IAS (Retd.), former Commerce Secretary and former CEO, NITI Aayog. The event was held on 30 April 2026 at Hotel ITC Grand Chola, Chennai.

The programme opened with a welcome address by Shri Alex Paul Menon, IAS, Zonal Development Commissioner, MEPZ-SEZ, followed by a presentation highlighting 43 years of MEPZ’s journey and its vision for the future. The presentation traced MEPZ’s evolution from its beginnings as an export processing zone in 1984 to a diversified and globally integrated ecosystem supporting exports, investment and employment across the TAP Region.



Key insights from the Lecture Series



Dr. V. Anantha Nageswaran highlighted the changing global economic landscape and the increasing importance of manufacturing for India’s economic resilience. He emphasised that India must move beyond import dependence towards strategic resilience and, ultimately, strategic indispensability by strengthening domestic manufacturing and export capabilities.

He also called for a fundamental reimagining of SEZs, from traditional export enclaves into strategic engines of manufacturing and global competitiveness. He emphasised the need for SEZs to attract global value chains and develop deeper capabilities in strategically important sectors rather than relying predominantly on cost-driven services.



Shri B.V.R. Subrahmanyam focused on the importance of manufacturing for exports and India's deeper integration with Global Value Chains. He noted that global production networks are rapidly being realigned and that India must position itself more effectively within these emerging supply chains.

He further highlighted the need to make SEZs more effective as single-window, ease-of-doing-business ecosystems, with simplified procedures that enable participation in modern global production systems. Looking ahead, he advocated evolving SEZs into specialised manufacturing zones with minimal processes and trust-based governance, while also exploring new opportunities across manufacturing and emerging service sectors.

The Foundation Day Lecture Series thus provided a valuable platform for reflection and dialogue on the future of SEZs, while reinforcing MEPZ’s commitment to export-led growth, manufacturing competitiveness, global value-chain integration and sustainable economic development.

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