In its first investment ever in North America, Jafza International, the global free zone operations arm of Economic Zones World has acquired around 5.260 million sq m (1,300 acres) of land in Orangeburg County, South Carolina, USA, to set up a world-class logistics and business park comprising light manufacturing, warehousing, and distribution facilities.

With total investment of around $600 million, Jafza aims to transform Orangeburg into a major logistical hub in the United States, which will create about 8,000 to 10,000 jobs over the next decade, and attract private investment of around $1.2 billion.
Salma Hareb, CEO Jafza and Economic Zones World, said: “Jafza’s long-term strategy is to develop a global logistics platform, and Orangeburg is one more major step in that direction.”
“Our extensive experience in running economic zones at home and abroad and the transformation of communities we serve speaks volumes of the level of our expertise and vision,” Hareb added.
Chuck Heath, managing director, Jafza International, said: “What we want to do is to facilitate the increase of foreign investments and opportunities in South Carolina, specifically in Orangeburg. We are experts at developing and creating a new economy.”
Jafza’s selection of Orangeburg County came after seven months of analysis of several sites in the Southeast.
“We equate South Carolina and Orangeburg with the conditions we had in Dubai when Jebel Ali was under development. The state has reliable power, sufficient labour and quality infrastructure. It’s quite close to the model we developed in Dubai,” Heath said.
In the next few weeks a Jafza International team will visit South Carolina to meet public officials and key stakeholders to understand their goals and concerns during the initial planning phase.
The investment has been widely welcomed in the US, specifically in Orangeburg County, which has been focusing on building its image as a global logistics triangle.
US Congressman Jim Clyburn welcomed the Jafza’s selection of Orangeburg saying it was welcome news on the heels of a recent report that Orangeburg County ranked 10th in the US for the poorest counties with populations over 65,000.
Orangeburg County Development Commission executive director Gregg Robinson expressed his excitement about the project and said Orangeburg County is “ready to move forward.”
Jim Roquemore, the previous co-owner of the land, said: “[the land] now belongs to Jafza. They will make the Santee community a better place to live as they will invest in this community and area. I really don’t think we could have asked or picked one company in the world that has the vision, the financial resources, the experience and the connections with Fortune 500 companies. We could not have chosen better partners.”
Roquemore said his research has shown that improvement has followed Jafza in every community it has entered.
“The people I have dealt with in Jafza… have been honest and forthcoming. They are people with a lot of honesty and integrity,” he said.