(January 10, 2022)
Chairman of National Business Group Pakistan, President Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum, and All Karachi Industrial Alliance, and former provincial minister Mian Zahid Hussain on Monday said the sudden decision of the government to withdraw textile policy 2020-25 has shaken the country’s productive sector.
The move will affect production and exports in such a way that their recovery will become a dream, he said.
Mian Zahid Hussain said that the decision has resulted in sleepless nights for investors and exporters as it has fanned uncertainty and unrest.
Talking to the business community, the veteran business leader said that the textile sector, which is the largest exporter and employs millions of people and playing with clearly violates national interests.
He said that following the announcement of textile policy 2020-25, investors pumped billions in the textile sector while many projects were in the pipeline which will be in jeopardy.
He said that the textile and associated sectors were taking off after a long time but the recent decision will cause a crash wasting all the efforts to promote production and exports while the country’s reputation in the export markets will be at stake.
Mian Zahid Hussain said that the Ministry of Finance is of the view that hundreds of billions of rupees were given to the textile sector but its performance is not as expected by the government.
This sector is receiving tremendous benefits compared to their current performance which is unjustified.
According to the ministries of energy and commerce textile exporters are not acting responsibly.
The business leader further said that if the government was not satisfied with the performance of the textile sector and it has been decided to withdraw the concessions, then it should have been withdrawn gradually and transparently in consultation with the concerned associations so as not to shake the confidence of the export sector.
On the other hand, leading textile millers say that they are frustrated because of unpredictable policies of the government which can cause the relocation of many industries to other countries where there is consistency in policies.
He further said that so far the current account deficit has more than doubled from the previous year’s deficit in six months but no serious steps are being taken in this regard which will not reduce the problems of the country but only increase it.
The situation of gas and electricity supply is far from satisfactory while relaxations to the textile sector are under threat which will add to the problems, he warned.
