Pakistan's Punjab govt finalizes site for garment city

13 Nov '13

2 min read

Pakistan's Punjab government has finalized the site for setting up a garment city near Kala Shah Kaku Motorway on an area of 1000 acres.

The garment city proposed to be set up under the public-private partnership mode would be equipped with all modern facilities for textile industry under one roof and would also house a centre of excellence facilitating training of workers.

Both local and overseas investors establishing the garment city would be provided with special incentives, Punjab chief minister (CM) Shahbaz Sharif said while speaking at a meeting held to review the progress of the garment city project.

Pakistan is soon likely to earn Generalized System of Preference Plus (GSP+) status from the European Union (EU), following which it foresees a considerable rise in its textile and garment exports, he added.

Mr. Sharif said that not only would the garment city cater to the increased export requirements post earning GSP Plus, but would also lead to generation of thousands of new job opportunities.

The Punjab CM also approved a business plan of the garment city, and formed a special committee under the leadership of Planning and Development chairman Irfan Elahi.

The committee comprising of secretaries of different departments and three office-bearers of textile association, would provide final recommendations for the project upon reviewing all aspects of the final plan of the project. The Punjab CM also gave approval for construction of a labour colony within the city.

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.

Noting that garment cities have four-times more employment generation capacity, while using only 25 percent of the energy consumed by textile units, Mr. Chaudhry even proposed setting up five more garment cities at Rawalpindi, Jhelm, Multan, Rahimyar Khan and Gujranwala, in addition to the three proposals awaiting approval.

Fibre2fashion News Desk - India

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