ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s textile industry is targeting a $10 billion increase in exports over the next two to three years, with the newly appointed chairperson of the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA), Asad Shafi, saying the sector can add $3 billion to exports this year through targeted new investment.
In his first statement after assuming office, Shafi said the $10 billion increase was achievable if the textile industry was provided with a competitive and predictable business environment.
He said his foremost priority would be to work with the government and industry to achieve a major expansion in value-added exports, investment and employment.
Shafi said Pakistan was among the few countries with a complete textile value chain, extending from fibre production to fashion. Aptma, he added, would seek to build on this strength by increasing exports of higher-value finished products.
According to him, more than 80 per cent of Pakistan’s textile exports already consist of value-added consumer products, but there is further potential to capture a larger share of the value generated after products leave factories.
He noted that manufacturing generally accounted for less than 30 per cent of the final retail value of apparel, while the remaining value was generated through design, branding, marketing and retail.
Shafi said establishing stronger links between Pakistani manufacturers and international brands would therefore be a key priority for Aptma. The association is also broadening its membership to include major Pakistani textile and apparel brands and retailers.
“We should not only manufacture a product in Pakistan; we should increasingly design it, brand it, market it and sell it internationally as well,” he said. The APTMA chief urged the government to ease foreign exchange and regulatory restrictions that, he said, were limiting investment in overseas warehousing, distribution, marketing and retail operations.
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He also called for an enabling framework for e-commerce and retail-oriented shipments, which could help Pakistani textile and apparel businesses reach international consumers more directly.
Shafi said sustained export growth would also require Pakistan to bring the cost of doing business closer to that of competing economies. He called for industrial electricity to be provided at 7 cents per kilowatt-hour, gas at $7 per MMBtu and financing at 7 per cent per annum.
He also sought the restoration of Drawback of Local Taxes and Levies (DLTL) support and faster payment of outstanding sales tax, income tax and other refunds to improve exporters’ liquidity.
Shafi said Aptma would work closely with the government to develop a practical roadmap for increasing exports, strengthening every segment of the textile value chain and attracting fresh investment.
The proposed strategy would focus not only on increasing production but also on enabling Pakistani companies to capture greater value through design, branding, marketing, distribution and international retail, he said.
