Pakistan, which remained one of the main suppliers of soccer balls for the football World Cup in the past, has lost this important market. The reason is the switchover from hand-stitched balls to machine-stitched soccer balls.
In the last world cup, which was held in 2006, Chinese machine stitched soccer balls enjoyed the monopoly. China had dominated the world cup and, in all probability, it would again dominate the football world cup due to be played in South Africa in 2010.
Professor Safdar Sandel, Chairman of Pakistan Sports Goods Manufacturers & Exporters Association (PSGMEA), told Business Recorder on Wednesday that since the orders from foreign countries had decreased considerably, Sialkot manufacturers have turned towards setting up units with machine-stitching system in place of hand-stitching.
To meet this new development, the Sports Industries Development Centre, in co-operation with Smeda, has been established and units for machine-stitching of soccer balls are coming up. Further, the concept for a 'soccer village' has also been floated, and designed, in co-operation with United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (Unido).
He said that despite the trend of shifting to machine-stitched soccer balls, the demand for hand-stitched soccer balls has not been affected much. He said that after separating from world sports goods leader in Saga Sports, 'Nike' has joined hands with another firm of Sialkot, namely Silver Star, where the business is growing fast.
It is hoped that it would soon get momentum and reach the same stage of co-operation and level of business as it had in the past years with Saga Sports. 'Nike', which at one time had decided to roll back its association with Saga Sports, has decided to stay in Pakistan for its own requirement of hand-stitched balls.
Despite this effort, a continuation of hand-stitched balls remains utmost preference with the local manufacturers, as well as international clubs and world stakeholders, besides Nike and Adidas. Pakistani manufacturers are meeting 85 percent of world requirements of hand-stitched balls.
PSGMEA Chairman said that a hand-stitched ball is better in play and quality than machine-made ball. For this reason, demand for handmade soccer balls would never go down, although, alongside, in three to four years, pre-dominant manufacturing of machine-made soccer balls would also be achieved by Sialkot manufacturers.
In this scenario, Sandel desired that Sialkot export business needed subsidies from government as far as it has to compete with other countries like China and India where subsidies like R & D and airfreight subsidised rates and other facilities are available.
He requested that freight costs, which are very high, should be brought down and research and development fund be allowed to all sports items as well. He said tat it was good news that from November 30, PIA has scheduled to start flights from Sialkot airport for Karachi and back.
This would give a big boost to the industries located in and around Sialkot. The airport has been completed with a marginal amount of Rs 3 billion as compared to the cost of Lahore and Islamabad airports where Rs 16 and Rs 20 billion, respectively, are being spent.
The airport at Sialkot is most modern and professionally designed. It has the longest runway available in the country and has the capacity to take all kinds of aircraft, including Boeing 747-400 and Airbus easily. The business community of Sialkot in an exemplary fashion had contributed Rs 5 million.
Sandel said that it was imperative that a minimum mark-up rate should be evolved to ensure a long-term growth of economy. Since the technical institutions have become scarce, there is shortage of skilled and technical labour, which may get worse in future.
Ground reality, he said, is that the labour for soccer ball stitching, gloves making, garments preparing and surgical instrument making is shrinking. This calls for enhancing the interest of public by opening state-of-the-art institutions for imparting standard technical and professional education which could benefit the masses for getting work training.