The Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) on Tuesday unfurled two-pronged strategy to bring the crises-hit textile sector out of mire. This premier chamber of the country suggested to the government to allow import of all types of cotton through Wagah Border besides, controlling the prices of polyester fibre, as in the absence of these measures it is not possible to ensure supply chain.
In a joint statement issued after a meeting of Standing Committee on Textile Sector, the LCCI President Shahid Hassan Sheikh, Senior Vice President Yaqoob Tahir Izhar, Vice President Mubasher Sheikh and Chairman Textile sector Standing Committee Younas Sheikh said that the textile sector is the biggest industrial sector of the country having 60 percent share in total exports, 27 percent in industrial value-addition and provides 38 percent employment but had been suffering a lot for the last many years due to wrong policies of the policymakers.
The LCCI office-bearers said that it is quite strange that the measures announced by the government in the federal budget could not be implemented so far due to which its exports had been showing declining trend.
The LCCI office-bearers stressed the need to take measures on war-footing as it is very difficult for any country to recapture world market if it's lost once to any other country.
They said that situation has become worse and even the oldest buyers of Pakistani merchandise are now making deals in China India and Bangladesh despite the fact the there is not much difference in cost of business with them.
Pakistan is lagging far behind because of shortage of skilled labour and this area has always been neglected for long. They said that a number of textile units had already been closed while many more are heading towards it.
The LCCI office-bearers urged the State Bank of Pakistan to announce long-tem finance facility for the spinning industry, which makes a major portion of the whole textile sector. They also stressed the government to arrange technical training for the youth to overcome shortage of the skilled labour.