ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is finalizing a five-year Textiles and Apparel Policy as well as a National Industrial Policy aimed at making industry regionally competitive, removing trade barriers and ensuring long-term export growth, Commerce Minister Jam Kamal Khan said on Friday.
The textile and apparel sector is Pakistan’s largest export earner, accounting for more than half of the country’s total exports, contributing around 8.5 percent of GDP and employing nearly 40 percent of the industrial labor force. But high energy costs, outdated infrastructure and policy uncertainty have slowed growth and left the country trailing regional peers such as Bangladesh.
“Pakistan must rely on export growth,” Khan said in remarks released by the commerce ministry after a meeting with industry representatives, including the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA), where he discussed the new textile policy.
“The government is committed to ensure all decisions are taken in consultation with stakeholders. For the first time, the government and industry are aligned in their determination to revive and enhance momentum of increasing exports.”
He added: “We will announce permanent and predictable policies to promote exports.”
