CII issues 6-point plan for textile & apparel industry

28 Jun '16

4 min read

Indian textile and apparel industry has the potential to create over 50 million jobs, bring social transformation and gain global dominance, says a study on the Indian Apparel, Made-ups & Textile Industry commissioned by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) to the Boston Consulting Group (BCG).

The task can be achieved by implementing GST, bold labour reforms, and robust export infrastructure coupled with innovation & technology, says the study tasked with identifying the key catalysts that will enable breakout growth.

As the textile and apparel industry is shifting its base away from China, it is creating a potential market of $280+ billion for other countries to capture, according to the CII. The shift is already happening in the apparel sector, large shifts are expected in fabric and yarn sourcing as well. Though Bangladesh and Vietnam are the current frontrunners, emergence of hubs in Africa (e.g. Ethiopia) and a strong resurgence seen for manufacturing in the US, the future landscape could be dramatically different.

Capturing this opportunity can bring immense social and economic benefits for India, where the sector is the largest industrial employer of women. If the industry achieves breakout growth, the report estimates another 50 million jobs to be created by 2025; with 70-80 per cent of those jobs going to women.

“The study estimates that the industry can triple in size over the next 10 years, get $150 billion annually in foreign exchange, and spur the apparel, made-ups and textile industry to reach $300 billion by 2025. The domestic market will also grow at least 2.5 times to become around $150 billion in size,” CII said.

“India is uniquely positioned to capitalise on this opportunity. We are the only country in the world other than China to have the entire value chain from fibre to fashion, both in cotton and synthetics, an abundant and young labour force, a vibrant domestic market and a good starting point in exports (2nd largest exporter of textiles, apparel and made-ups in the world),” said CII director general Chandrajit Banerjee.

The study notes that shifts in the global apparel, made-ups and textile industry are going to be shaped by four major factors: a) cost competitiveness, especially in labour/wage structures and energy structures per unit of output; b) ease of market access (both in terms of tariffs/duties and time to market); c) ease of doing business; and d) technical innovations.

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