RMG industry in turmoil

25 May '10

1 min read

The second largest city of Nepal, Biratnagar, where hundreds of apparel firms used to manufacture export-oriented products, is in turmoil. The goods were produced in the city and then exported to markets in US, EU, Canada and Japan.

Apparel industry of the country garnered highest foreign exchange during its peak period and was the leading export-oriented garment producing industry of the country. During 2002-03, RMG exports stood at over Rs 11.5 billion (US $165 million) and during 2008-09 these exports tumbled down to about Rs 4.5 billion ($65 million).

Just a few thousand employees are now left in the industry, which once provided livelihood to around 50,000 people including women. The country used to house 212 export-oriented production units in the year 2000-2001, but now only a few of them exist.

It used to export over 80 percent of the overall clothing exports to the US market before the complete elimination of quotas. These exports slipped down steeply to Rs 1 billion ($14 million) in the fiscal 2008-09, which otherwise amounted to Rs 9 billion ($128 million) during the year, 2002-03.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk - India

More Apparel/Garments News - Nepal...