The Pakistan Readymade Garments Manufacturers & Exporters Association of Pakistan that is shortly known as PRGMEA has recently placed their demand to the government of Pakistan to allocate minimum Rs60 billion for the export-oriented industry in the upcoming budget under PM’s export package, besides releasing all stuck-up claims of the exporters.
While addressing the issue the Central Chairman of PRGMEA, Mr. Ijaz Khokhar appreciated Prime Minister for announcing Rs180 billion export-led growth initiatives for the export sector of Pakistan. He also said that this decision has already started showing results. He believes that it is because of this decision that the exports of value-added textile industry are moving upward at the time when the exports in all other sectors are continuously going downward.
While sharing his views on the matter, Khokhar asked the government to honor its pledge to clear pending tax refunds of exporters without any delay. An emphasis is placed on that the government should appoint a solo minister for the textile industry who will be responsible for taking care of the matters of the industry and will speak on behalf of the industry. Also demand was an introduction of the liberal import policy for raw materials for re-exports like duty-free import of fabrics and accessories which are not being manufactured in Pakistan. He also said that the exports of raw materials must not be discouraged.
While sharing his views on the matter the Vice Chairman of PRAGMEA, MR. Jawwad Chaudhary said that “value-added textile export sector is the backbone of the economy with great potential for earning foreign exchange.” He also said that, “the high cost of doing business, energy shortages, myriad of taxes on exports, rising exchange rate, raw material shortages, and the divide between policy and its implementation have eroded the economic viability of the business.” He believes that in absence of proper policies and their proper in time implementation, we would lose the shares in exports and can face extreme loss on our position at global level.
