Pakistan’s textile industry has committed to unprecedented value addition by committing to set up 1000 garment plants, said Patron-in-Chief of the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) in a review for a local newspaper.
He said each plant would consist of 500 stitching machines at an investment of $7 million; able to produce garments for exports of $20 million per annum, while generating employment for 700 workers. The total investment would be US $7 billion generating annual exports of $20 billion and providing employment to well over 700,000 workers. A thousand garment plants are being established near major textile producing cities, he added.
It may be noted that the textile sector is on an upward trajectory with the addition of $500 million per month through incremental capacity. This has been enabled through TERF and its support of 100 new projects. However, even the current capacity is not fully utilized due to energy supply and quality constraints for the last 6 months, costing Pakistan approximately $300 in lost production/exports million per month.
Meanwhile, the global apparel market is expected to grow to $843.13 billion in 2026 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.6%, but Pakistan’s textile industry has not captured a sufficient level of this demand, given its potential and existing capacity to add $10 billion per annum to exports.
According to Dr Ejaz, The textile industry is faced with countless opportunities to capture greater market share, but state reforms in energy, technological upgradation, diversification and value addition will be necessary in order to enhance the potential of the sector and facilitate economic growth at unprecedented levels. It is pertinent to note Pakistani exporters’ exemplary handling of disruptions such as the COVID-19 pandemic and its greater performance compared to regional competitor Bangladesh.
