Lanka’s once struggling uniform makers now moving up the value chain

As the Sri Lankan textiles sector now stands bolstered by the recent offer of support from the Government of India, the domestic manufacturers, who were struggling a few years back, are successfully moving for a bigger slice in domestic demand.

“I am pleased to say that now, our textile manufacturers are fulfilling almost all uniforms needs of armed forces and 50% of all our education (school) uniforms, which was only 30% earlier due to lack of capacity. This is an encouraging trend in our annual $ 29 m national uniforms requirements and I thank our committed textile makers for not abandoning and leaving the sector in the face of capacity issues,” announced Rishad Bathiudeen, Minister of Industry and Commerce of Sri Lanka on 30 September.

Bathiudeen announced this in the aftermath of his visit to several private sector uniforms manufacturing plants located throughout the Western province, accompanied by his Cabinet colleagues – Bandula Gunawardena, Minister of Education and Pavithra Wanniarachchi, Minister of Technology and Research on 30 September.

The 15 manufacturing firms fulfil the needs of the country’s armed forces, the police and the prisons (except the Navy) entirely in addition to school uniforms. Bathiudeen has now successfully stimulated the manufacturers to produce 50% of 11.21 million metres of fabrics ($ 15.57 million, required by 2013 January) at a value of $ 7.25 million, by December 2012, while the rest is to be imported.

The supply of only 50% is due to the limited capacity of manufacturers in terms of manufacturing capacity, finance and management support. “If our manufacturers can supply the 100%, we will be happier and ready to support them,” Bathiudeen added. “I am also pleased to say that the total demand for uniforms from the country’s armed forces, the police and the prisons are now met by our domestic manufacturers,” he revealed.

The Ministry of Industry and Commerce has estimated that in 2012, for country’s armed forces, the police and the prisons, uniforms valued at more than $ 14 million would be needed – all of which will be manufactured by the 15 Lankan textile firms engaged in this endeavour.

All school uniforms are made domestically using a ‘weaving process’ – in which only yarns are imported and everything else is completed here, while for the armed forces, police and prisons uniforms, the ‘import grey process’ is used for local processing afterwards.

Under Bathiudeen’s guidance, top officials have also begun work on the Sri Lanka Textile Strategic Plan (SLTS plan) in which the Lankan manufacturers will be assisted to become the main uniform suppliers in time to come.

“The Domestic Textile Allocation Programme for Uniforms Materials (DTAUM), which was born in 2004 under Cabinet approval, is being fully implemented, starting this year. The textile revival SLTS Plan is to boost the entire sector capacity under the 2004 Cabinet approved DTAUM,” said M.A. Thajudeen, Additional Secretary (Textile) of the Ministry of Industry and Commerce. “We are targeting 75% of school uniform production locally by 2015,” he added.

Last September, visiting Indian Secretary (Ministry of Textiles) Kiran Dhingra, leading the biggest ever textile industry delegation to Sri Lanka, at  an official level meeting with Bathiudeen in Colombo announced India’s intentions to liberalise its textile sector for Sri Lanka as well as provide the much needed technology upgrade support to the sector. “Considering Sri Lanka’s official request made to Minister Anand Sharma during his visit to Colombo recently, Minister Sharma has now decided to increase the current five million piece quota given to Sri Lanka to eight million without any sourcing requirements imposed by India,” she announced.