September 7, 2003	Sunday	Rajab 9, 1424

ISLAMABAD: The major textile exporting countries including Pakistan will face yet another dilemma in the post-textile quota regime when the developed countries will take advantage of non- tariff barriers (NTB) for restricting exports from these countries.

Pakistan along with other textile exporting countries must stress on the developed countries that NTB, which would mostly include social compliance issues, environmental issues, and labour standards may not be used against them, which might affect their exports to reach their markets, said former chairman, All Pakistan Textiles Mills Association (Aptma), Nadeem Maqbool.

In an interview to Dawn, he said that developed countries would use NTB as an excuse against the textile exporting countries with sole aim to protect their own textile industry and unemployment.

He said that another big problem in the post quota regime for textile exporting countries would be, that the developed countries would look for ways for raising protectionist walls by initiating a chain of dumping cases against the developing countries.

He said to cope with the situation the government and the textile exporters should get together to fight against it.

The chairman did not rule out the possibility that the proposed trade liberalization in the textile sector would result into price decline of commodities for making it competitive with products of other countries in the international markets.

The chairman also said that the developed countries have provided high subsidy to their farmers which gave an edge to their products on those with other developing countries.

He said in Pakistan due to IMF pressure the government could not provide subsidy to farmers particularly to cotton growers. On the other hand, he said in the United States alone the government provided the highest subsidy to its farmers of cotton.

“In the textile sector modernization has already been started and we would be able to make competitive products and maintain standards to compete with products of other countries,” he said. He said the quality of Pakistani yarn is good and its prices is also less due to which its exports are increasing.

He said that APTMA was carrying out a study to assess the impact of Chinese textile products on those of Pakistan which would made public soon.

For making Pakistani products more competitive, he said the input cost needed to be reduced. The government has already lowered the interest rates, which he said would result into reduction in the borrowing mostly used for up-gradation, raw material costs would reduce and reduction in the electricity charges.

According to statistics, the textile and clothing are the biggest manufacturing industries in Pakistan, accounting for about 20 per cent of the value added in manufacturing and employing 24pc of industrial labour force.

Pakistan produces 8.9 per cent of the world’s raw cotton and it has yet an access only to 2.4 per cent of global textile trade.

Textile yarn and fabrics are exported mostly to the non- quota countries and there will be no difficulty in exporting these products once the quota are removed.

However, it would be the category of madeups and clothing where Pakistan was expected to face severe competition with the elimination of quotas from other countries, he added.

Talking to Dawn on telephone from Lahore, Aptma representative in Pakistan’s delegation to Cancun, Abid Farooq said that in the post quota regime there was potential for increase in the market access for garments and value-added products.— MZ