LAHORE  -  Stakeholders across the cotton industry — from seed providers and farmers to ginners and textile manufacturers — have welcomed the government’s decision to allow the import of hybrid cotton seed. They hailed the move as a step in the right direction, expressing hope that it would not only revive the country’s “white gold” but also help reinvigorate the national economy.

Representatives of the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FPCCI), Pakistan Hi-Tech Hybrid Seed Association, All Pakistan Textile Manufacturers Association (APTMA), Cotton Ginners Association, Pakistan Kissan Ittehad and others, addressing a joint press conference, said that the removal of restrictions will ensure a stable and enhanced supply of raw materials for our industry, enabling textile manufacturers to operate at optimum capacity and compete effectively in global markets. Pakistan Hi-Tech Hybrid Seed Association (PHHSA) founder chairman and father of hybrid rice in Pakistan, Shahzad Ali Malik, speaking on this occasion, said Pakistan had its bumper cotton crop in 2014 which was around 14 million bales but since then due to various factors it had dropped to around 5 million bales impacting our ginning and textile industry, backbone of our economy.

He hailed that the ban on import of cotton germplasm had been lifted after 50 years courtesy efforts initiated by him and backed by FPCCI, APTMA and other stakeholders. He said it is a silver lining that we may soon get our cotton crop revived. He also welcomed that the meeting discussed and approved lifting ban on March 07, 2025 and only in two months a SRO had been issued in this regard. He said it shows seriousness of the government in reviving cotton. “Upward production of rice and maize was made possible by the local and foreign companies through introduction of hybrid seeds and that was why we are able to cross $4 billion exports of rice,” he added. FPCCI Zonal Chairman Zain Iftikhar Chaudhry, welcoming the government decision, said that we were seeing bad cotton crop performance due to substandard seed, inefficiencies in pest management and climate change. He said recent decision of the government had opened a new door towards getting better yield and improved quality of lint.

APTMA Chairman Kamran Arshad said this decision has come at a time when the cotton sector-central to Pakistan’s textile based economy-has been facing multi-facets challenges resulting in sharp decline in domestic cotton production and closure of a number of ginning factories.

He disclosed that the textile sector had to import cotton worth $4 to $5 billion this year but this trend was not sustainable. By allowing access to high performance cotton seed, the incumbent government has laid the foundation for reversing this decline.