KCA seeks role in cotton policy formation

KARACHI: The Karachi Cotton Association (KCA) has expressed appreciation for the recent joint initiative by the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) and the Pakistan Cotton Ginners Association (PCGA) to draft a national cotton policy and standardise sale/purchase contracts for raw cotton. However, the KCA has also urged the government to ensure the inclusion of all stakeholders, particularly the KCA itself, in these critical deliberations.

In a press release issued on Wednesday, the KCA emphasised its longstanding efforts to rally stakeholders of the cotton economy for a unified strategy aimed at increasing national cotton production. The association stressed that such coordination is essential not only to meet the growing demands of the local textile industry but also to generate surplus for export, thereby saving and earning valuable foreign exchange.

The KCA recalled that despite its repeated invitations to industry stakeholders for collaborative policymaking, it had not received positive responses from other groups. “The KCA appreciates the efforts towards the revival of cotton in the country,” the press release added, “but believes that any national policy must be developed in consultation with all key players.”

Highlighting its prior work, the KCA noted that it had earlier developed a draft contract for local sale and purchase of raw cotton, which includes arbitration mechanisms under the KCA’s by-laws. While the PCGA approved this draft, the APTMA has yet to respond. The KCA urged the APTMA to accept this document instead of initiating a time-consuming process to create a new draft from scratch.

The KCA called on the government to implement quality improvement measures for cotton production, standardise packing practices and ensure a uniform bale weight of 170 kilogrammes. It reiterated that cotton exporters play a key role in market stabilisation and that their interests, along with those of growers and traders, should be reflected in the final policy.