Trade Ministry prepares new strategy to boost textile industry

CAIRO – 30 September 2017: Egypt’s Trade Ministry is currently preparing a national strategy for the spinning and weaving and readymade garments industries, Minister of Trade Tarek Kabil said in a statement on Saturday.

He said that the strategy aims to boost the vital textile industry in all production stages, adding that the ministry is further studying the establishment of a new “textile city” in the near future.

This came during Kabil’s meeting with members of the Textiles Industries Chamber, of the Federation of Egyptian Industries (FEI), in which they reviewed ways to boost the vital industry.

Kabil said that the government is keen on improving the textiles industry so that it meets international standards and domestic demand as well as exporting readymade garments to international markets.

He referred to the chamber’s pivotal role in eliminating any obstacles that might stand in the way of the industry.

Kabil said that the chamber should also contribute in formulating the new strategy that aims at reviving the textiles industry through expanding the plantation of cotton and injecting new investments.

He stated that this year has witnessed an increase in the area of planted cotton, where it reached 215,000 feddans in 2017, compared to 120,000 feddans last year.

He added that textile exports increased by 12 percent this year, while imports declined by 59 percent.