Naveed Arif, Secretary, Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) has said that textile policy would be announced very soon, which will not only reactivate all the segments of textile industry but also yield positive impact over export strategy.
Addressing the members of Pakistan Hosiery Manufacturers Association (North Zone), he mentioned that this year missing of export targets are due to multiple reasons, such as use of old machinery and obsolete technology.
Naveed Arif said that there are specific issues facing Pakistan's textile exports during the financial year 2006-07, however, Pakistan's export suffers from serious structural issues, which need to be addressed primarily by textile manufacturers.
Pakistan textile products are low value-added and of poor quality therefore fetches low international price. Pakistan's labours are less productive because little or no efforts have been made to impart training or improving their skills, he added.
Naveed Arif disclosed that Pakistan is reviewing the ILO supported labour project for Cambodia, and a delegation will visit to Cambodia in future. He said that the Economic Reform Agenda of the Government expects exports to make a greater contribution to the GDP by achieving a quantum leap. In the words of our Prime Minister, "Exports is our lifeline". Thus TDA was reinvented based on principles and emerged as the successor organisation to build upon EPB achievements.
For successful export promotion it is vital that the product supply chain is strengthened specially to add value. As an autonomous body and a state-of-the-art, empowered organisation, the TDA will espouse and practice a holistic approach to the planning and development of exports with major thrust behind aggressive marketing of Pakistan and its products, he added.
Naveed Arif said, "Through focus, synergy and collective wisdom and enhanced capability and capacity of companies supplying goods and services, the Authority will spearhead the national drive for exports under the guidelines of the TDA Board significantly influenced by 10 private sector persons.
TDA will also undertake export marketing and export promotion within the enlarged mandate and remit. The TDA will create direct linkages with stakeholders, local and abroad, to synergies resources towards the pursuit of a quantum leap in exports. The Authority will advise the government on regulations and trade development initiatives to achieve this growth. The authority aspires for the export contribution to be enhanced from 13 percent to 15 percent of GDP in the short term.
TDA is a proactive facilitator, Naveed Arif said and added, it has a strong focus on stakeholder valued services and will have an effective and structured dialogue with all stakeholders through Sectoral Export Committees, Export Facilitation Committees, WTO cell etc. The advice and output from these interactions will be instrumental in formulating effective trade policy initiatives and monitoring services of TDA backed by independent customer satisfaction surveys.
A detailed Human Resource Audit will form the basis of a customised training programme implemented through world class H.R consultants, he added. Earlier, Mian Naeem Ahmad, Vice Chairman, PHMA (North Zone) presented a welcome address and highlighted the problems of hosiery manufacturers.