KARACHI, Nov 12: Leather garments exports have recorded a drastic fall of around 57 per cent in October 2002, as compared to October 2001. The exports in July-October 2002 were only $75 million as compared to $142 million during the same period last year, showing a sharp decline of 45 per cent.

Pakistan Leather Garments Manufacturers and Exporters Association (PLGMEA) Fawad Ijaz Khan in a statement said that the decline had actually started from October 2001, after 9/11. Therefore, he said, the decline in leather garments exports during October 2002 is 68 per cent as compared to October 2000.

He said that PLGMEA had given proposals to the ministry of commerce and finance as well as State Bank of Pakistan for revival of the industry but unfortunately the government has not acted on the proposals.

As a result of this not only a number of leather garments units have closed down but a large number of lay-offs also took place in the industry, he added.

The major proposals forwarded by the PLGMEA to the government include imposing of export duty of 20 per cent on export of semi-finished and finished leather, allowing 10 per cent compensatory rebate on export of leather garments and freezing markup on export refinance of leather garment exports for one year.

Shut-downs of units, he said, will inevitably cause massive unemployment form this labour intensive value-added export sector.

Fawad urged the government to take immediate note of this desperate situation and urgently act on proposals sent by PLGMEA to save the leather garments industry from certain collapse and widespread unemployment to workers.