STRENGTHENING THE TEXTILE AND CLOTHING SECTOR IN SOUTH ASIA

Project Leader: Dr. Nisha Taneja and Dr. Saon Ray
Research Team: Prithvijit Mukherjee and Mishita Mehra; Saman Kalegama, Safdar Sohail, Khondaker Moazzem and Paras Kharel (External Consultants)

Commencement: October 2011
Completion: March 2013
Funded by: Asian Development Bank

In recent years all South Asian countries have managed to improve their shares in the textile and clothing sector in the world market. However, there have been some big gainers in the process while for others the gains have been more modest. This study commissioned by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) examines the firm-level strategies related to design, production and marketing and also identifies internal and external factors that have enabled firms to move up the value chain. The study also examines the characteristics of emerging regional production networks. Issues related to the domestic regulatory regimes, incentive structures and preferential tariffs that may have contributed to or constrained the growth of global and regional value chains are also being examined. The study will identify future challenges to the growth of textiles and clothing from South Asia and suggest policy options for governments in South Asia to strengthen these sectors. Besides using secondary data, the study will conduct a primary survey in the region. The study will cover India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. ICRIER, the nodal agency, will be responsible for coordination, monitoring, and implementation of the study.
RESEARCH