Apparel industry - a major boon to Lanka’s economy

Walter Liyanaarachchi

GARMENTS: The Apparel industry which inherits a magnificent historical background, today contributes 53% of the total foreign exchange relieving the heat of the Government coffers to a larger extent, said Minister of Export Development and International Trade Prof. G. L. Pieris.

Prof. Pieris said so delivering the address in the capacity of the chief guest at the inaugural session of the 85th Textile Institute World Conference titled ‘Concept to Consumer’.

The Conference will continue till tomorrow.

Endorsing the observations made by Prof. Lakdas D. Fernando at his welcome address Prof. Pieris said the

 legend or fact when King vijaya met ‘Kuveni’ in 5th Century B.C. was spinning cotton also proves that there was cotton grown in Sri Lanka in the 6th Century BC which was spun and made into cloth and in a highly caste conscious feudal society a princess could be depicted spinning cotton which shows the social status of this activity.

Further progress of the Apparel industry in Sri Lanka lies with the objective of enhancing to satisfy and falling in line to meet the requirement of the customer, the Minister said. The survival or peril depends upon the adaptability of the apparel industrialists.

They should adapt to the time to time fashions, he said. At the conclusion, Prof. Pieris said that Sri Lanka has been appropriately and pensively selected to hold the conference. The reason for the selection is purely because of its uniquely high calibre in the history for apparel industry and its up coming trend.

Prof. Lakdas D. Fernando, Conference Chair said that Prof. Pieris is no stronger to the subject of textile and apparel industries and has been responsible for initiating zero duty concessions for a number of exports including apparel and textiles from Sri Lanka to the European Union under the G.S.P+scheme.

Our country is considered a bio-diversity hot spot and when many parts of the world run out of water, Sri Lanka is one place where it is predicted that this precious liquid will still be available. This beautiful isle, in the second quarter of the Sixth Century, had become the entrepot of sea trade between the west and the far east.

Chinese and other far eastern ships sailed into our harbours carrying their cargoes of silks, while from the west came the vessels and merchandise of the Persians and others.

It is also stated that in 5th and 6th Century AD in the Court of Arabia-Sri Lanka cottons and silks were highly appreciated, Fernando said.

A large number of members of apparel industry institutes world over represented the conference.