Garment, knitwear exports rise
The News – International, Pakistan
By By Mansoor Ahmad
1/29/2014
LAHORE: Twelve foreign garment experts, besides training two local experts, are imparting training in 12 different export-oriented garment and knitwear industries of the country in an effort to boost their quality and productivity.
The impact of this training programme is already visible in the shape of six to 10 per cent increase in exports after six months of training at a time when exports of the sector are generally on the decline. This also gives credence to general impression in official circles that quality and efficiency are the main impediments in the way of increasing apparel exports to their potential.
The News has learnt that after evaluating reports of two international consultants, Werner and Gizri, the federal government decided to remove deficiencies in skills and efficiency faced by the value-added apparel sector. In the short-term, foreign experts were hired to provide on-job training and introduce new technologies in leading industries and at the same time train local trainers who could impart training on a broader scale in government’s technical institutes.
These experts, engaged for a period of one year by the Technology Upgradation and Skill Development Company (TUSDEC), started imparting training in March 2014 at the start of the judicial crisis and stayed throughout the period of political uncertainty. This has sent a positive message to foreign buyers that business and foreigners’ safety has not been compromised due to the law and order situation during the past 10 months.
The experts were engaged after discussions with the local exporters about the various problems they faced in improving their efficiency and quality. According to TUSDEC sources, the main concern of the exporters was about sewing process that included cutting and stitching of garments and knitwear. Other problem areas were dying, finishing, knitting, laundry, packing, industrial engineering and mechanical maintenance of their units.
The most surprising aspect was that the top and big apparel exporters of the country faced these problems. The smaller units too naturally faced multiple of these problems with more severity.
Skill Upgradation Project Director Waqas Munir Qureshi, talking to The News, said the company had decided to start enhancement of skills and technical know-how with the top exporters that had comparatively better workforce, machinery and infrastructure.
He said the company engaged two local experts in the same fields with the foreign experts, adding the idea was to improve the capacity of the local experts to the level of foreign experts who would transfer skills and knowledge to them during their one-year stay in large units. In these units, they were already engaged in improving procedures and skills of the staff.
The local experts would then be placed at the disposal of other exporting units to apply what they learnt from the foreign experts. The News has learnt that five apparel exporting units in Faisalabad, five in Lahore and one each in Karachi and Pindi Bhattian are currently benefiting from the services of these experts. Each unit was given the option to select up to four fields where they needed expert advice on skill and technical improvement.
Many exporters complain that they were not consulted in that process. TUSDEC authorities, however, contend that top exporters were included in the process and said in case of refusal by any unit falling under the training programme on merit the next best was selected.
