By Ayesha Mudassar ISLAMABAD, March 04 (INP-WealthPK): The Pakistan Footwear Manufacturers Association (PFMA) has set the export target of $1 billion per annum by 2027, raising it from the current about $145 million a year. [caption id="attachment_64464" align="aligncenter" width="696"] The Pakistan Footwear Manufacturers Association (PFMA)[/caption] According to Zahid Hussain, the PFMA chairman, the association in collaboration with an Italian company had established the Italy-Pakistan Footwear Technological Centre in Lahore in 2020 to gradually put the shoemaking units on technology. “A technical lab was set up in the centre, which has been facilitating the small and medium enterprises to manufacture international standard products. The industry is attaining access to technology after the setting up of the centre,” he said, according to WealthPK. The PFMA chairman has also said the government’s supportive policies have helped the sector’s productivity and exports. “The government has rationalised the tariff and duties on import of raw materials and finished footwear. These measures have resulted in a reduction in production cost, enabling the industry to increase productivity and be competitive in the international market,” he said. Shoe manufacturing is one of the industries with a long history in Pakistan and it is largely located in and around the city of Lahore. However, of the more than 80,000 shoemaking factories in the country, a bulk of 75,000 manufacturers still lack mechanisation to increase the production volumes. There are 10 mechanised medium units producing more than 5,000 pairs a day; 150 mechanised small units with the daily production of 2,000-5,000 pairs and 5,000 semi-mechanised units, producing almost 2,000 pairs a day. Exports of Pakistan's footwear are mostly limited to France, Germany, the Netherlands and Saudi Arabia. In 2019, more than 69% of the country's footwear was exported to Europe. According to Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, the country’s footwear exports went up by 20.51% to $126 million in January 2022 from $104 million in the corresponding month of last year, owing to a sustained increase in demand. However, Pakistan’s exports in December 2021 were $140 million, reported WealthPK. The total pairs of footwear manufactured expanded to 14,446 in the first half of the current fiscal year 2021-22 (1HFY22) compared to 12,110 pairs in 1HFY21. The sector registered a 19.3% growth, according to WealthPK. The government urgently needs to formulate a footwear policy, which should focus on bringing mechanisation to the industry after declaring it an independent sector to boost value-added exports and create employment opportunities. Besides, exhibitions should be organised at the local and international levels for local manufacturers to enable them to showcase their products. Customs and regulatory duties on imports of raw materials for shoemaking should be reduced.