Cotton shortfall points to chronic woes
Pakistan’s textile industry may be in for a slump following a shortfall in domestic cotton production, sources have warned.
In order to keep up with the demand of the industry, the country will have to import as many as five million bales of cotton, which is expected to cost around Rs2 billion, they said. But although the government has already taken notice and is taking steps to mitigate the shortfall, textile industry insiders and agricultural experts say the issue points to a far larger chronic problem.
According to sources, Pakistan’s cotton production is likely to fall short by five to six million bales this year. So far, cotton producers have harvested a little over one million bales of cotton, they said. In contrast, almost twice that amount had been produced by this time last year.
In the past, the country was able to keep up with the textile industry’s demand for around 15 million bales through local production, sources said. However, over the last 10 years, cotton production in Pakistan has gradually declined to 8.5 million bales, they added.
According to them, it is unlikely local growers will be able to produce more than six million bales of cotton this season. This is likely to have a severe knock-on effect on the country’s exports. The textile industry accounts for roughly 60% of Pakistan’s exports. Already, due to the gradual decrease in cotton production, more than 700 ginning factories have closed, leaving millions unemployed. Only 400 ginning factories are currently operational in Pakistan and a drastic reduction in production is likely to result in further job losses.
One main reason behind the downward spiral in cotton production is the lack of quality seeds, textile industry insiders said.
Speaking to The Express Tribune, cotton ginners’ representative Dawood Karim said the situation could be improved if the government readily invested in research. “If the government mobilised research institutes and imported standard cotton seeds from the US, China and Turkey, we could be producing bumper crops like India,” he claimed. Former head of All Pakistan Textile Mills Association Ali Pervez Malik said with or without imports, the textile industry would face serious difficulties this season. “Importing cotton would double our transportation costs,” he said.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 4th, 2020.
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