Lubna Babar, a factory worker, was laid off at the start of the year, a victim of a crisis in Pakistan’s textile industry, which has seen it lose ground to more agile Asian competitors.
“When you lose your job, your life comes to a close,” the 43-year-old from Lahore told AFP.
“We’ve been working in factories for years… the day you get sacked, the story ends there.”
Following the commencement of war in Ukraine, Pakistan’s industrial manufacturing sector, like that of the rest of the globe, has suffered from a slowdown in global demand and an increase in energy costs.
However, the difficulties of the textile sector, which accounts for 60% of Pakistan’s exports, are exacerbated by the country’s dire economic situation and months of political turmoil.
In Pakistan, the business was boosted at the tail end of the coronavirus epidemic, when it was liberated of limitations ahead of regional rivals India and Bangladesh, and it benefited from government financial aid, including lower energy rates.
In 2022-2023, however, textile exports fell by 15 percent to $16.5 billion.
“Two years ago, we were on a very high growth trajectory… we were confident that our exports this year would go to $25 billion,” said Hamid Zaman, managing director of Sarena Textile Industries.
“Unfortunately, when you have political instability and things are not clear, and the policies of the government are reversed, this whole thing has gone into a tailspin,” he told AFP.
The political upheaval began in April of last year, when Imran Khan was ousted as prime minister in a no-confidence vote.
In May, he was imprisoned for attempting to turn broad public support into a movement to compel an early election, resulting in violence that was only terminated by a large crackdown on his party and its followers.
On Saturday, he was found guilty of graft and sentenced to three years in prison.
