27 February 2004	Friday	06 Muharram 1425

ISLAMABAD, Feb 26: Leather exporters have asked the government to announce incentives aimed at improving the quality and standard of leather goods to make them competitive in the international markets.

Official sources told Dawn on Thursday that the proposals were submitted to the commerce ministry for consideration. Pakistan's leather industry could become a major source of foreign exchange earnings if various processes of making hides and skins a profitably saleable commodities are modernized.

It was proposed to open training institutes for producing well-trained manpower for this industry on the most modern lines. Similarly, government was asked to encourage the private sector in providing of job training to their employees to ensure that their workers keep constantly improving their knowledge and skills by remaining posted with the latest developments in this particular field.

It has also been proposed that the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) should conduct research studies to work out measures essential for improving of various processes including the collection and storage of raw hides and skins, their tanning and final production of exportable finished leather as per standard specification.

The provision of adequately trained manpower for the production of properly tanned leather and its conversion into high quality leather goods needed government patronage in the form of well-equipped training establishments spread all over the country.

It was recommended that special leather technology wings should be attached to the vocational training centres so that a fairly large number of skilled tradesmen for this industry could be made available.

The producers of raw material and leather goods of various types as well as the exporters of these items should be encouraged to form their associations so that their collective efforts could be more effective for greater export of leather goods. Such grouping would be of great help to them in setting up training institutes for producing skilled tradesmen for the industry.