Under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project, Pakistani and Chinese experts have approved to develop a textile cooperation framework relying on readymade garments, man-made fiber, and textile skill training. A diagnostic study on Pakistan’s textile sector, conducted by the National Development & Reform Commission (NDRC) of China and China International Engineering Consulting Corporation (CIECC) shared viewpoints on the potentials and barriers of large-scale textile mills in Pakistan under the organization of Board of Investment (BOI). Executive Director General BOI, Qasim Raza Khan informed the participants that CPEC has now entered into the pragmatic phase of industrial cooperation, and it is the right time to take Pakistan forward on the path of industrialization. Project Director of PMU Asim Ayub gave a brief presentation on the textile diagnostic report and specified main areas of cooperation where Chinese could provide support to Pakistan with the objective of developing a textile cooperation framework.
Executive Director APTMA Sattar Shahid shared his view that for any meaningful investment to be made, there is a need to fix the business climate, i.e., effective contract enforcements and proposed the need for an efficient and workable bankruptcy law. Director Textile Industry Division, Kanwar Usman shared his views on the CPFTA-II with its impact on the textile sector of Pakistan as it is in the pipeline with special emphasis on infrastructure development. Chairman Pakistan Readymade Garments Manufacturers & Exporters Association (PRGMEA), Sheikh Mohammad Shafiq was of the perspective that large-scale units of Pakistan are only 20 percent of the total while SMEs comprise nearly 80 percent. The author of the diagnostic study, Dr Du Zhen Li, Deputy Director General of CIECC and the focal person on Joint Working Group (JWG) on Industrial Cooperation (IC) from Chinese side, joined the workshop through a videoconference and highlighted that Chinese business community needs more information to understand the textile industry of Pakistan in the backdrop of CPEC.
