Engineering News reports that SA’s clothing and textile sector has saved thousands of jobs with the assistance of the Department of Trade and Industry’s (DTI’s) production incentives programme within the Clothing and Textiles Competitiveness Programme.  

The DTI approved R4.9-billion in incentives, with more than R3.1-billion disbursed in the last financial year.  “Throughout the sector, a number of companies that qualified and drew from both programmes were able to save 81,252 jobs, while an additional 9,672 jobs were created,” Trade and Industry Minister Dr Rob Davies said.  Speaking in Durban this week at the Clothing Manufacturing Industry Sector Summit, he noted that this was an indication that the clothing sector was a significant labour-absorbing sector and that government needed to create more opportunities to keep it sustainable.  “Whatever is needed to be done to protect the industry, it must be done, but it should be in the interest of industry development and to improve the local supplier base,” Davis told delegates.

• Read this report in full at Engineering News
• See too, R5 billion boost for clothing and textile industry, at SABC News

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