MULTAN City News

Traders leave for Germany to attend int’l textile fair

From Our Correspondent

MULTAN: Pakistan is participating in Heimtextil Frankfurt like previous years to introduce the best quality textile transformed into bed linens, upholstery, furniture fabric, household decorative covers, garments etc while 80 stalls will be set up to display Pakistani products.

A delegation of traders from South Punjab included Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry vice-president Syed Muhammad, former Punjab Minister Khawaja Jalaluddin Rumi, Sohail Khan Tareen, Zulfikar Ali, Ch Abdul Jabbar, Ajmal, Akmal and Abid Hussain left for Germany on Saturday to join this textile fair to be held from Jan 12 to 15. Pakistani products had ever attracted the foreign buyers, said Asim Shah, before his departure. He said that Heimtextil was the biggest international trade fair for home and contract textiles and the global benchmark for quality textiles of design and innovative functionality. He said that this event helps designers, retailers and manufacturers stock up on their year’s quota of the best raw materials at the cheapest of prices. Leading textile manufacturers from all over the world attend this fair with the best of their materials, he informed. With an increased focus on sustainable products, this fair to be held at Messe Frankfurt invites all to buy the best in textiles, he added.

 

Call to pay attention to SMEs to double GDP

From Our Correspondent

MULTAN: Multan Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Fareed Mughees Sheikh has said that Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) can double the national GDP if proper attention is paid to this sector.

Comprehensive SME strategy, special incentives, improved focus, better laws, improved regulation, loans and settling energy issue could help the SMEs, which could turnaround economy as experienced in China, Japan, Korea, Malaysia and other countries, the MCCI president said in a statement issued here on Saturday. The MCCI president said that the government had done a commendable job by providing financial support to the falling SMEs in the troubled areas but a lot had to be done. Fareed Sheikh said that the SME sector had 40 per cent share in the GDP, 30 per cent share in exports and it employees 80 per cent workforce. Fareed Sheikh said that 3.2 million SMEs were registered in Pakistan while a lot more were unregistered, which deprive them from many benefits. Law and order, energy crisis, lack of regulatory support, outdated laws, lack of market information and latest trends were the main reasons behind lacklustre performance of the SME sector, he added. He disclosed that around 96 per cent businesses in Pakistan fall under the category of the SMEs therefore the regulator must push the banks to revisit policy of ignoring the SMEs and chalk out a comprehensive plan to develop this critical sector to reduce poverty and unemployment. This sector had the potential to become the engine for growth and prosperity in Pakistan, he added.