FCCI demands special package for textile sector

FAISALABAD: The upcoming government should start homework immediately to announce special package, based on already-formulated textile policy, and implement it after formally coming into the power.

Addressing a meeting here on Thursday, Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FCCI) president Shabbir Hussain Chawla said textile was the main component of our national economy.

He lamented that due to the lukewarm attitude of the previous governments, the textile exporters failed to maintain their presence in the international markets and our exports gradually decreased from 26 billion to 18 billion dollars.

He said this decline plunged the national economy in deep crisis and despite of pressing demands of the textile sector, the declining trends continued to prevail as governments took only cosmetic steps to satiate the business community. On the other hand, our regional competitors, including Bangladesh, captured our markets and now its textile exports have jumped to 30 billion dollars while Pakistani exports are dwindling far behind, he complained. He pointed out that the import-export gap has also widened further posing a serious threat to the economic viability of Pakistan.

The FCCI president lauded the PTI efforts of restoring the textile sector on sound footings, saying renowned businessman Zafar Iqbal Sarwar had formulated the PTI textile policy which was dually presented and appreciated by its chairman Imran Khan. He said PTI should nominate Zafar Iqbal Sarwar as the textile advisor so that he could ensure necessary measures to revive the textile sector which was passing through a protracted crisis.

Chawla demanded that Pakistan government should provide same incentives to the country’s textile exporters like the exporters of regional countries are enjoying. He said nomination of Zafar Iqbal as advisor will not only pave way for expeditious implementation of the PTI textile policy but also give due representation to the Faisalabad textile sector in the federal cabinet.