Textile exports plummet with each passing year

21 Jun '10

2 min read

Despite the fact that a few sub-Saharan countries which have the privilege of exporting textiles and garments duty-free to the biggest economy in the world; the US through the Africa Growth and Opportunities Act (AGOA), have witnessed exports from the sector sliding down with each passing year.

Nigeria is one such instance from where overall global shipments from the textile and apparel sector have fallen from US $49.95 million in 2006 to $31.75 million in 2008. Though export figures for 2009 are not yet available, experts aver that, the previous years figure could be lower than that in 2008.

Meanwhile, the government took five years to approve and release a textile revival fund, first announced in 2005, but still many of the units from the textile sector have not been able to access the revival fund due to the strict norms laid down by the Bank of Industry (BoI), which has been appointed as the lead bank.

The Nigerian textile industry has been mainly afflicted by the apathy of successive government, which despite being one of the biggest employment generators did not receive help from the government, leading to employment figures plummeting down. Inadequate infrastructure facilities too have contributed to the downfall.

Fibre2fashion News Desk - India

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