Pakistan's new textile policy to aim at $26bn exports

15 May '14

2 min read

The new textile policy for financial years 2014-19 currently being designed by the Ministry of Textile Industry will aim at increasing Pakistan’s textile exports to US$ 26 billion over the next five years, Minister for Textile Industry Abbas Khan Afridi has said.

Speaking at a press conference, Mr. Afridi said the new textile policy, which is likely to be finalized by June 30 this year, will have special focus on value addition. The proposed policy also envisages tax incentives for import of latest machinery.

Improvement of seed quality would also be focus of the new textile policy, which also envisages imparting training in garment manufacturing to about 120,000 people over the next five years.

Pakistan is one of the five countries that have the complete textile and garment value chain from cotton production, ginning, spinning, fabric production and garment making. Despite this, the country exports only 13 value added products compared to 950 value added items that can be exported, the Minister said.

He said the Ministry is already considering revival of sick textile manufacturing units, so as to boost exports and take more advantage of the Generalized System of Preferences Plus (GSP+) status given by the EU.

Talking about the energy crisis, which is affecting textile production, especially in Punjab, the Minister said that a committee consisting of officials from the ministries of Finance, Water and Power, Petroleum and the Textile Industry has been formed to address the issue.

He informed that the Ministry has put a proposal for providing five percent cut in interest rate, and another proposal for offering subsidy on import of technology and machinery in the federal budget 2014-15. However, he added that the final decision would be taken by the Finance Ministry and no proposal would be added in the new textile policy which is not backed by the Ministry of Finance.

Fibre2fashion News Desk - India

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