Partnership project between BFZ Germany and the five textile associations of Pakistan

The BFZ GmbH international Division of Germany recently held a  meeting for the formation of a forum on public-private dialogue on April 25 2009 in Karachi.

The meeting was attended by Mr. Sultan A. Chawla, President of FPCCI, Mr. Zubair Motiwala, Advisor to the Chief Minister, Sindh, Mr. Nusrat Iqbal Jamshaid, Director General of TDAP, Mr. Mohammad Idress Ahmed, Textile Commissioner, Mr. Bilal Mulla, Former Chairman PRGMEA and Mr. Martin Strahle, Internal Project Co-ordinator of the partnership project.

In addition to above, the meeting was largely attended by the office bearers of trade associations, members of the business community and representatives of business community.

Bfz GmbH - Berufliche Fortbildungszentren der Bayerischen Wirtschaft is one of the largest private providers of vocational training in Germany; the International Division of BFZ conducts development cooperation projects on behalf of World Bank, European Union and the German government in several countries in Latin America, Africa and Asia. In Pakistan, the project is funded by the German Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development and is supported and monitored by SEQUA GmbH.

BFZ is partnering with five textile Associations namely, All Pakistan Textile Processing Mills Association (APTPMA), Pakistan Cloth Merchants Association (PCMA), Pakistan Hosiery Manufacturers Association (PHMA), Pakistan Readymade Garments Manufacturers and Exporters Association (PRGMEA) and Towel Manufacturers’ Association of Pakistan (TMA).

Overall objective of the project is to equip the textile industry with tools to work as economically, efficiently and ecologically sustainable enterprises, by applying adopted techniques, which will ensure a sustainable textile industry, which will promote the economic and social development of the country. As part of the project, the formation of a Forum for the public-private dialogue on the issue of sustainable production is envisaged.  ­BFZ GmbH and their partner associations in Pakistan, namely All Pakistan Textile Processing Mills Association (APTPMA), Pakistan Cloth Merchants Association (PCMA), Pakistan Hosiery Manufacturers Association (PHMA), Pakistan Readymade Garments Manufacturers and Exporters Association (PRGMEA), and Towel Manufacturers’ Association of Pakistan (TMA) invited several key persons from industry and governmental bodies to discuss on the formation of a Forum on public-private dialogue.

After the introduction and welcome note from the moderator Mr. Bilal Mulla (former Chairman PRGMEA), Mr. Martin Strähle, International Project Coordinator of the partnership project between BFZ and the five textile associations gave a brief overview over the project and underlined the interest of BFZ in the formation of a forum as this is one of the aspired project results.

Mr. Martin pointed out that BFZ believes in the necessity to join forces between the government and the industry to guarantee the success of such a forum. In order to increase the effectiveness of this  forum, he had suggested that the plenary meetings should be held only once a year, while the real work has to be accomplished in subcommittees that meet frequently. Subcommittees for different issues should constitute of representatives of the government and the private sector and be facilitated by a consultant.

The participants at the meeting organized by International Division of BFZ

Mr. Andreas Dohle, a consultant of BFZ, who implemented one of the largest forums in Brazil according to the above mentioned model, explained more in detail the structure and the advantages of this approach.  Afterwards the Director General of TDAP, Mr. Nusrat Iqbal Jamshed, explained the ideas of the Government on the formation of a forum. He also referred to a previous discussions with Mr. Martin and Mr. Salahuddin from BFZ, where it was mutually agreed that cooperation on this issue would be beneficial. Mr. Nusrat Iqbal from TDAP also mentioned that his office is already in regular contact with associations of the textile sector in this respect.

The Textile Commissioner Mr. Mohammed Idrees Ahmed appreciated the idea of the forum, but also pointed out that there are several other Forums already existing and that duplication must be avoided. Mr. Sultan Chawla, President of FPCCI and Mr. Zubair Motiwala, Advisor of the Minister of Sindh on Investments thanked BFZ for its work in Pakistan and assured the general support for the establishment of a forum on public-private dialogue.

After the official notes Mr. Muslim Raza, Provincial Chief from SMEDA and Mr. Shehzad Salim (PRGMEA) contributed their comments to the question and answer session. Mr. Shehzad Salim pointed out that after the general agreement of this meeting the next step must define how the further proceeding for the establishment of a forum should be modulated and defined.