By Iftikhar Ahmed
FAISALABAD, Nov 26 (APP): When the world nations are embarking on Fifth Industrial Revolution (5IR) with ample use of Artificial Intelligence, Pakistan is still struggling to rise up to this challenge from existing 2IR or 3IR.
Amidst persisting economic recession due to issues like power and raw material price hike and interest rate, Pakistan once reckoned among top ten textile countries, is now facing the challenge of its sheer survival.
Experts believe that respective governments and industrialists were collectively responsible for this situation, resulting in shut down of industries or producing costly products, unable to compete in global market.
Political instability, non-consistent policies, use of old technologies and failure in capturing more world markets had been other factors hampering industrial growth.
This tendency also slowed down economic progress giving birth to problems like unemployment and dearth of foreign exchange.
“Revolution is a far cry as by the time we are just struggling to keep our industrial sector alive,” remarked Muhammad Shafiq Anjum, Founder President Faisalabad Chamber of Small Traders and Industry. “Our small and medium industries are in real fix with around 70% power looms closed down in Faisalabad.”
Similarly, he said, flour mills shrunk to around 50% and same was the case with other industries. “High mark up rate and fuel prices besides other factors had spoiled our industrial sector.”
He demanded consistent and holistic policies at least for a decade by involving all stakeholders for encouraging local and foreign investors.
Common men like Advocate Rana Mehmood-ul-Hassan could also feel this pang of recession pleading that political stability was must for industrial revival. “Both the local and foreign investors were fearing to invest as they are uncertain if their investment would be secure in every day changing political situation.”
As Dr Sajjad Arshad Senior Vice President FCCI also described the political uncertainty as one the main reasons behind recession besides rising interest rate and fuel prices and use of old technologies.
“Paucity of funds and cost of doing business was skyrocketing making our exportable goods too costly as compared to other countries,” he said and mentioned to Bangladesh where the government had directed its banks to allocate major chunk of their loan portfolio for SMEs. “This experiment yielded positive results and their industry started performing better than ours.”
He stated that Pakistan could only keep up the pace if it switches to new technologies, ensure easy financing, provide cheaper energy and encourage SMEs. “Hundreds industrial units in Punjab has been closed down and their revival would be an uphill task for any upcoming government. We need revolutionary and out of box solutions to revive this sector.”
As most of experts are extremely worried about this situation, they come up with multiple solutions to steer country out of this recession.
“Five items are must of industrial revival including stability, long term approach, indigenization, innovation and business eco-system,” said Engineer Dr Yasir Nawab Dean Faculty of School of Engineering and Technology at National Textile University.
He said investment is the basic component for industrialization as he mentioned to investment in Indonesia by many companies of Germany, France and other countries. “Why these countries would not invest in Pakistan if we provide them better opportunities.”
But, he regretted, our policy makers and industrialists had bitterly failed to adopt long term approach. “Many small scale industries like cycle manufacturing and other accessories were closed down only for earning a marginal profit from imported goods.”
He said unchecked imports badly affected local industry that converted us into a consumer economy instead of a productive economy.
“We need to focus our industrial and agricultural sectors alike to ensure cheaper raw material for industry and easier business environment,” he said. “Indigenization is another important factor for industrial revival and we should develop technologies indigenously by expanding our knowledge base.”
He said, “if Germany and Japan could this even after devastating battles, why could not we. What positive we could achieve, if we are still far away from innovation.”
Dr Yasir regretted the cold shoulder of authorities when an idea of developing electric vehicles came under consideration. “Nobody tried to further this project conceived by scientists of our own universities.”
He said it is dejecting that our experts when proceed abroad contribute valuably to those economies. “But, locally we take least care of their ideas.”
Urging congenial atmosphere for businessmen, he said if investors would have to waste their money and time due to red-tapism why they would set up businesses in our country. “Therefore, a coterie of businessmen and technocrats instead of bureaucrats should be created to facilitate investors.”
He recommended a clear shift in policies to create business friendly environment was concerned. “This shift could take some time but ultimately it would have far reaching effects.”
Mian Zahid Aslam former President Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FCCI) suggested business friendly investment to revive industrial sector. “Computer interventions in industrial sector had made it an every growing sector. Therefore, for surviving in this atmosphere, we shall have to go beyond the traditional business mechanisms.”
He also pleaded for addressing the challenges like financial starvation, lack of technological up-gradation and market expansion.
He appreciated the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) role during Covid to support the industrial sector that had provided Pakistan an edge to boost country’s exports.
