South Africa wants to develop a master plan for the growth of the apparel, textile, footwear and leather retail value chain, targeting creation of 60,000 jobs, according to trade and industry minister Rob Davies, who said his department is working with Justin Barnes, facilitator for the new automotive master plan till 2035, to come out with a similar plan.

The plan may be announced early next year, a report in a South African newspaper quoted the minister as saying on the sidelines of a function to launch the Toyota Wessels Institute for Manufacturing Studies in Durban. Barnes has been appointed executive director of the institute.

The extent of illicit trading happening in the textile and apparel sectors and new entrants and competitors make the challenges more complicated, Davies said.

He said the government had seen the impact of incentives for the clothing and textile retail value chain a few years ago when the incentive was changed to be based on competitiveness from being earned on the basis of exports, with the duty credits sold to importers of new clothes. (DS)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk – India

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