GENEVA - Despite widespread concern that the lifting of global textile and clothing quotas in January 2005 would be a labour and trade catastrophe for many developing countries, the results thus far of the phasing out of the MFA have been mixed, according to the ILO report ( Note 3) prepared for the meeting.
While many Asian countries appear to be doing well or holding their own in the wake of the MFA phase-out, textile and apparel producers and workers in Europe, the Americas and Africa seem to be losing out.
China and India, as predicted, appear at first glance to be the biggest gainers following the end of the MFA, with China seeing an 18.4 per cent increase in textile and clothing exports during the first four months of this year, and India recording a 28 per cent growth in textile exports for the first three months. However, further examination shows that the growth rate for Chinese exports was actually declining month by month, while India also saw a decline of 24 per cent in its ready-made garment exports.
Meanwhile, a number of Asian countries, including Pakistan and Bangladesh, often cited as potential losers under the new regime, do not appear to be doing badly in the months following the end of the MFA.
As anticipated in most post-quota scenarios, employment in the United States and European Union (EU) textile and clothing industry fell at the end of 2004 and during the first months of 2005, declining by 6.5 per cent between May 2004 and May 2005 in the United States and by 5 per cent between February 2004 and February 2005 in the 25 Member States of the EU.
With increased competition from Asia, most African and Latin American textile and clothing producers have also lost market share in the recent past.
The ILO tripartite meeting also examined innovative approaches in a number of countries and textile and clothing enterprises in their search for improved competitiveness. Their experiences provide useful material for the elaboration of a global strategy to promote fair globalization in the sector.
The study cites Cambodia, where an ILO project, "Better Factories Cambodia", has helped the garment industry to deal with the phase-out of the MFA, and ILO Decent Work Country Programmes in Morocco, the Philippines and Romania, which aim to improve the competitiveness of the textile and clothing industry by promoting decent work.
Note 3 - Promoting fair globalization in textiles and clothing in a post-MFA environment . International Labour Office, Geneva, 2005.