South Africa’s textile industry to get government boost
South Africa's ruling African National Congress (ANC) and the trade union organisation Cosatu have confirmed that a document which details measures being taken to bring relief to the clothing, textile and footwear industry will be published soon. The draft paper covers the industries’ analysis, sources of competitiveness and restructuring measures.
It also reportedly spells out a range of measures required to enhance competitiveness of the industry including improve quality of locally manufactured goods, promoting product/design innovation, upgrading technology and reducing raw material costs, as well as urging for a more effective use of local suppliers, improved supply chain management and higher levels of investment.
The paper recognises the need to secure local demand, improve market access for exports and promote South Africa as a destination of fashion tourism. Finally, it spells out plans to safeguard measures on imports allowed under the rules of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and combat illegal imports.
