Korean International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) assured All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) of providing all technical and financial support to the textile industry of Pakistan in promoting manufacture and export of non-woven fabric and technical textiles.

AsadShafi, APTMA made a detailed presentation on textile industry in general and prospects of non-woven textile industry in Pakistan. He appreciated the establishment of a testing laboratory by KOICA at NTU, Faisalabad in the first phase of cooperation and lauded the launching of the second phase aimed at providing R&D facilities, advance testing and support to the potential investors. He hoped that this generous offer from KOICA would go a long way to enhance Pakistan’s meagre share of 0.2 percent in the $200 billion global market of technical textiles.

Shafisaid presently not more than 200 manufactures, mostly small and medium sized companies based in Sialkot, Gujranwala, Faisalabad, Lahore and Karachi are engaged in the production of non-woven fabrics at small scale. He was confident that the support of KOICA would encourage large scale manufacturing of technical textiles in Pakistan.