Clothing and textile in Lebanon en route to extinction amidst Globalisation and official neglect

As Safir newspaper published today a report on the textile and clothing sectors which is nearing extinction as most textile factories have closed shop.  Indeed, these factories which numbered 1000 before the civil war and were a source of livelihoods to thousands of workers, have now downsized to some small workshops located in the Southern Suburbs of Beirut, Bourj Hammoud, Jabal Mohsen and Tripoli.  The size of membership in the textile factories’ syndicate decreased to no more than 35 of which 5 or 6 produce textile and the rest produce clothing.
The Secretary General of the Syndicate, Naji Mzannar, shared with As Safir the plight of the textile and clothing sector amidst an absence of official protection as well as an increased taxation of imports. He added that the European partnership agreement opened the door for merchants to import to Lebanon via Cyprus without paying custom taxes and the Arab Trade Agreement allowed foreign products to enter Lebanon via the UAE and other countries, thus increasing competitive pressures on Lebanese products.  For his part, the owner of a clothing and textile factory in Metn, Pierre Abdel Nour, underlined the high domestic production costs and noted that the state does not care for this sector and offers no facilities to those involved in it.
Source: Al-Safir 5 November 2014