China wakes up to threat from export of inferior & fake textiles

26 Aug '09

2 min read

The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) is upset over the fact that a deluge of cheap Chinese goods is leading to closure of local industries and wiping out jobs and added by saying that they were being produced by “exploited workers” without labour rights and earning appallingly low wages.

The Textile, Garments and Tailoring Senior Staff Association of Nigeria estimates that over 350,000 jobs have been lost directly and more than 1.5 million indirect, as a result of influx of cheap Chinese textile goods resulting in shut down of over 150 textile mills in the past few years.

The Chinese government has woken up to the fact that these low and cheap quality products have the potential to ruin the reputation of the export industry in China and have agreed to clamp down on these type of companies if the respective governments in the African continent could provide them the names of these enterprises.

Commercial Counselor in the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, in the department for West Asia and Africa Affairs, Ms Xie Yajing said that while her government is willing to act, it needs the support and co-operation of African governments to succeed.

She added by saying that, that countries such as South Africa, with respected quality control institutions should consider naming and shaming Chinese firms with products that failed their tests and hoped that South Africa will cooperate to identify those businesses and products so that the bad practices are stopped.

She said, “We are proud of the ability to produce quality products for a fair price due to low labour costs among other advantages, which is different from inferior products produced by a select few Chinese individuals lacking a professional business ethic and in no sector is this more critical than in the textiles sector”.

Fibre2fashion News Desk - India