20000418

Faisalabad to

be declared

textile city:

Apcea chief

KHALID ABBAS SAIF

FAISALABAD: Industrial and infrastructural facilities of all kinds are available to make Faisalabad an export city and it would be advisable that the potential of existing textiles cities in the country should be utilised for boosting exports to world's major markets instead of spending funds on creating new textile cities.

This was stated by Mian Naeem Omer, Chairman All Pakistan Cloth Exporters Association (Apcea) here on Monday.

He was commenting on the proposed establishment of textile cities in the draft policy paper of textile policy vision 2005.

He said that the exporters in Faisalabad have since long been demanding the city to be declared textile city, as it is the biggest centre of textile and ancillary sector.

Biggest yarn market in the world was located at Faisalabad, which had also the unique distinction of having a conglomeration of 200,000 power looms making it the biggest weaving city of the world.

More than 40 textile-spinning mills in the city were operating in the textile belt of the area, he said. There were more than 1,000 hosiery units in the city catering to the domestic and export demands of knitted items.

Nearby 450 textile processing mills were engaged in processing and value addition of fabric exports items, he said, and added that facilities of dry port Ñ biggest in Pakistan, international airport with adequate cargo handling facilities and related infrastructure set up were available in the city.

The city enjoyed the distinction of being the biggest fabric export centre of the country, fabric exporters were on top in textile quota exports volume of 21 percent of total quota exports of country. Nearby 60 percent of USA textile quota exports of the country were being made from Faisalabad, Apcea chairman said.

It was therefore, imperative that Faisalabad city be given the status of export city, he said. Official recognition pronouncement and patronisation was necessary to give impetus to the exporters of the region and to impart a sense of pride and competitive fillip to boost textile exports from the region, he said.

Appreciating the proposed incentives and long term policy measures in the textile vision 2005 draft, Naeem Omer called for laying greater emphasise on the bracing up exercise for textile sector keeping in view the gradual phasing out of textile quota five years hence, he envisaged special wing in the commerce ministry to urgently undertake the review and possible pitfalls for textile sector after quota phase out and the ways and means to develop alternate strategy for diversification and expansion of textile exports of the country in the forthcoming changing scenario of world trade.

Realistic view of existing ground realities and proper vision and perspective of the further possibilities was highly essential, to enable Pakistan to be among the top five textile exporting countries in Asia, he said.