Professor  Dilio  Hernández,  director  of  the  UCV  Center  for  Research  and  Prospective  Analysis,  proposes  incorporating  both  public  and  private  universities.  The  project  is  advancing under the framework of the Organic Law on Special Economic Zones.

By Vanessa Davies

 The  “house  that  conquers  the  shadows”  seeks  to  overcome  not  only  the  specters  of  every  kind  looming  over  Venezuela,  but  also  the  shadow  of  stagnation.  The  tsunami  the  nation  has  endured  —  bearing  different  names  and  interpretations  depending  on  one’s  view  of  the  conflict  —  devastated  institutions  of  higher  education:  their  workers,  infrastructure,  and  connection with the world.

 One  pathway  toward  a  different  reality  could  be  the  creation  of  a  university  special  economic  zone .  At  least,  that  is  how  Professor  Dilio  Hernández,  director  of  the  Center  for  Research  and  Prospective  Analysis  (CIAP)  at  the  Central  University  of  Venezuela  (UCV),  envisions it.

 “We  built  the  project  around  the  Organic  Law  on  Special  Economic  Zones  because  that  is  where  it  must  be  situated  in  order  to  obtain  the  benefits  these  special  economic  zones  provide,”  Hernández  explained  during  the  National  Meeting  of  Chairs  and  Centers  for  Innovation and Entrepreneurship recently organized by the  UCV Emprende  Chair.

Many Hands Working Together

 Official  figures  indicate  that  Venezuela  has  more  than  70  universities,  including  traditional,  experimental,  and  private  institutions,  and  the  system  reaches  175  institutions  when  colleges  and  university  institutes  are  included.  Venezuela’s  University  Law  defines  them  as  a  community of spiritual interests seeking truth and strengthening human values.

 A  Special  Economic  Zone  (SEZ) ,  according  to  the  Ministry  of  Planning,  is  defined  as  a  space  designed  to  strengthen  regional  potential  and  benefiting  from  various  incentives  to  export  goods  and  services.  The  Organic  Law  on  Special  Economic  Zones,  enacted  in  2022, includes  industrial,  technological, financial, and  agricultural  activities,  as  well  as  benefits  such as a one-stop administrative system and tax incentives.

 As Professor Hernández recalled, SEZs offer tax exemptions.

 “Negotiations can be held with municipalities, negotiations can be held with SAPI,” he noted.

 For  the  university  zone,  he  indicated,  they  would  request  a  100%  exemption  from  income tax  , followed by a preferential fixed rate subject  to mandatory reinvestment in the university.

 According  to  Professor  Yudi  Chaudary,  director  of  the  UCV  Emprende  Chair  and  another  promoter  of  the  initiative,  this  structure  would  provide  universities  with  tools  for  acquiring  equipment, upgrading technology, and forming partnerships to reduce costs.

 The  framework  currently  being  developed  by  UCV  includes  a  western  node  centered  on  the  University  of  Zulia  and  Rafael  Urdaneta  University;  a  central  node  at  the  University  of  Carabobo;  an  Andean  node  at  the  University  of  the  Andes;  and  a  central-western  node  involving Yacambú University and Lisandro Alvarado Central-Western University.

 “We can build a very large university package,” Hernández emphasized.

 The  model  being  outlined  is  a  hub-and-spoke  system  —  in  other  words,  one  principal  node  with several secondary nodes.

Problems Waiting to Be Solved

 Universities  participating  in  the  innovation  and  entrepreneurship  meeting  agree  that  urgent  needs exist.

 “There  are  many  companies  with  needs.  A  small  replacement  part  for  machinery  that  is  out  of  service  can  be  produced  by  a  university,”  explained  Professor  Ulises  Rojas,  Academic  Vice  Rector of the University of Carabobo.

 “We  have  a  country  full  of  problems  waiting  to  be  solved,  and  if  the  knowledge  you  possess  is  not  connected  to  problem-solving,  it  simply  becomes  another  book  in  a  library,”  reiterated  Professor  Hirwing  González,  training  director  at  the  Innovation  and  Entrepreneurship  Center  of Andrés Bello Catholic University (UCAB).

That  knowledge,  she  argued,  can  serve  as  the solution  not  only  to  a  problem  but  also  “to  a  market need of any kind — economic, social, or technological.”

 The pharmaceutical sector could become the spearhead of this vision.

 “I  imagine  a  pharmaceutical  company  located  in  Los  Ruices  that  could  have  a  technology  node  at  UCV  with  the  capacity  to  develop  research  and  generate  products,  while  benefiting  from tax exemptions,” Hernández illustrated.

 Other  sectors  that  could  benefit  from  a  university  SEZ  include  banking,  through  payment  gateways  and  related  services;  retail,  through  tools  for  large-scale  logistics;  and  the  public  sector, through digitalization initiatives, among many others.

 But the university special economic zone “will not be anchored on Jupiter.”

 In  a  Venezuela  where  electricity  demand  exceeds  supply  —  as  acknowledged  by  government  authorities themselves — the project requires  energy  security .

 Likewise,  Hernández  stressed  that  robust  fiber-optic  infrastructure  and  curricular  flexibility  are critical.

 Dialogue with authorities to move this initiative forward is only just beginning.