Tanzania is perhaps best known as one of Africa's major cotton producers, with average crop yield for the past three years reaching 2,75,700 tons of seed cotton. Of this around 70 per cent is exported as lint after being semi-processed. But the country also has a long history in garment and textile production going back as far as 1966.

There are currently around 16 or 17 big factories in Tanzania, of which four or five export outside the East African Community. Two are just offshore stitching enterprises. Tanzania aims to be an origin for making garments with the potential to integrate knitting, weaving and spinning. The country has benefits like reasonable labor costs, large quantities of locally available cotton and yarn, an infrastructure, unrivalled market access and political stability.

Like many sub-Saharan African countries, Tanzania's garment exports to the US enjoy duty-free access. The country has similar access to European Union markets. Currently, 68 per cent of apparel exports from Tanzania to the US are synthetic knit shirts for men and boys.

By focusing on building a new mass stitching industry, Tanzania can start with a clean industry without built-in compliance issues and can leapfrog several stages of development.

In a major setback to Bangladesh's textile chemical exports to Pakistan, National Tariff Commission (NTC) of Pakistan is planning to impose anti-dumping duty on import of hydrogen peroxide from Bangladesh. The NTC has already issued a notice of initiation and invited the interested parties to attend hearing on the issue. Dumping occurs when a company exports a product to any country at prices lower than the normal value (the domestic price or the cost of production) of the product on its domestic market.

On behalf of the Bangladesh government and exporters, Bangladesh Tariff Commission (BTC) will become parties in the hearing and fight against the allegation of dumping the product as the allegation is not true, say commerce ministry of Bangladesh.

As per World Trade Organisation, the importing country can impose anti-dumping duty on import of the product if it finds proof on investigation that dumping has occurred, such dumping has caused or is causing material injury to the domestic industry and there is a causal link between the dumping and the injury found. Anti-dumping duty cannot be imposed if the conditions are not met.

Hydrogen peroxide is used in bleaching and sterilising process in textile and paper and pulp industry. It is also used in bleaching, oxidizing, detoxifying and deodorising purposes. Pakistan is the second largest importer of the product from Bangladesh importing $1.2 million worth. Bangladesh in July-April of the current fiscal year 2014-15 exported the product worth $6.5 million in different countries including Pakistan, India, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Nepal.

There is a difference of opinion between the State Bank of Pakistan and the textile industry on what ails textile exports. The bank feels structural issues are the primary cause behind weak textile exports rather than energy constraints. It says there has been a decline in export of cotton yarn and fabrics and this has more than offset the increase in export of knitwear, woven garments and towels.

The central bank says textile exports posted a 0.4 per cent decline in the first half of FY 2015 as compared to the same period last year and this decline comes primarily from low value-added items. However, Pakistan’s textile manufacturers say energy constraints and security risks are the prime factors that have badly affected the textile sector’s performance. They say there is no supportive textile policy and due to unfriendly tax structures there is no incentive for industrialists to upgrade their textile units as per global standards.

Textile units want the duty structure to be relaxed so that manufacturers can import latest machinery and make full use of GSP Plus status benefits and export value-added items like knitwear and readymade garments to the European Union.

The Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) has proposed closure directives against the Metro Hi-tech Cooperative Textile Park at Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC), Kolhapur, after it found gross irregularities in the way the firm treats effluents. MIDC is one of the newest industrial parks in the district, set up for attracting more business activities.

MPCB had received a complaint a week ago from a local village near the park alleging that the industry was releasing untreated effluents into canals connecting the Doodhganga river. The river is a tributary of the Krishna river, which enters Karnataka. The sewage treatment plant set up by the park was found to be not working for a long period. The machinery was found lying idle.

The same effluents are released into a pond near Doodhganga canal with a depth of around 40 feet. Samples of the incoming effluents in the sewage plant and the ones released in the pond have been collected and are being examined. The park will be given a notice of 48 to 72 hours, after which its water and electricity supply will be stopped. The notice will be issued to the regional office of MIDC, which is the facilitating agency of the state for industries.

MPCB’s directives will be implemented by the MIDC and the power distribution utility at the district level.