Pakistan's Punjab CM approves garment city project

30 Oct '13

2 min read

Pakistan’s Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Shahbaz Sharif has approved a project for setting up a garment city close to Kala Shah Kaku Motorway and has directed concerned authorities to present a model and a financial plan for the project.

The garment city would span on an area of 1,000 acres of land and would also cover the Punjab China Industrial Zone.

Appreciating the move, Pakistan Readymade Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (PRGMEA) North Zone vice chairman Jawwad Chaudhry said the project has great potential for employment generation with less investment and limited energy requirements.

Mr. Chaudhry stressed that the project should be given the utmost significance and the construction should begin soon without any negligence or delay, as garment cities have four-times more employment generation capacity, while using only 25 percent of the energy consumed by textile units.

The PRGMEA North Zone vice chairman also proposed setting up of five more garment cities at Rawalpindi, Jhelm, Multan, Rahimyar Khan and Gujranwala, in addition to the three proposals awaiting approval.

Countries like Vietnam, Indonesia and Cambodia have a large share in world garment market, while countries like India and Bangladesh are gearing up for the same, at this time the newly proposed garment city would provide a competitive edge to Pakistani garment makers in various categories, he added.

Mr. Chaudhry also said the Government should also prioritize securing the GSP Plus status from the European Union, as it can boost the country’s exports by over US$ 500 million, alongside creation of more than 25,000 new jobs each year.

Further, expressing disappointment over delay in clearance of refund claims of textile and garment entrepreneurs by the Federal Bureau of Revenue (FBR) and energy crisis which is badly hitting the value-added industry, the PRGMEA official sought immediate attention of policy makers to the matter.

Fibre2fashion News Desk - India

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