Pakistani Furniture Sector

Pakistani Furniture Sector

Introduction

The furniture business is a sub set of the wood working business. Furniture dominates the wood working sector being 3% of the total. The sector is dominated by a large number of small organizations producing styled furniture 1.5% of the total wood working sector whereas the modern furniture comprises 45% of the wood working sector. 81% establishments have less than 10 employees, 14.4% have 10-25 employee where as 4.5% have 25+ employees. 

Composition

The sector can be divided in three parts: partially mechanized with two or less than two machines and mainly manual work, products are generally low quality ; semi-mechanized units with four to six machines and partly manual work ,, products are generally of a better quality than the first group ;  and mechanized unit with ten or more machines , products are generally of  relatively good quality . Less than 5% units are engaged in export activities. About 6.5% units are Members of the Chambers of Industries and about 11% are members of associations. 58% companies are sole proprietorships, 42% partnerships and 4.8% are limited companies. Furniture is made by hundreds of small-scale enterprises in Pakistan. Traditionally, furniture manufacture was considered under the village carpentry sub-sector. Now, however, new modern furniture factories have been established by the private sector in Gujarat, Jhang and Peshawar. Nearly all wood used for furniture making is shisham (Dalbergia sissoo, 82 percent), with small quantities of deodar (Cedrus deodara), poplar (Populus deltoids), mulberry (Morus alba) and other species. The furniture makers themselves saw most wood. An FSMP survey estimated urban consumption of wood for furniture at 5.9 m³ per 1000 population.

According to the World Trade Organization's statistics, the furniture industry in Pakistan has been expanding. Many new furniture companies are now joining the furniture industry. Pakistani handmade furniture is in high demand by high-end customers. Pakistani furniture manufacturers have expertise in this area, due to the type of wood used namely 'sheesham' (rosewood) which adds to this furniture's demand. The leading wood-furniture-making areas of Pakistan are Chiniot, Gujrat, Peshawar, Lahore and Karachi. Workshops producing export quality furniture are located manly at   Chiniot, Gujrat, Peshawar, Lahore and Karachi. The furniture market is divided into home use, contract markets, supplying to hotels and res Wood is undoubtedly the main material in Pakistan’s exports. But the country also produces some metal (wrought iron rod, steel), upholstered furniture for offices and special medical furniture. Foams are also used for cushioning in upholstered chairs and seating. As mainly solid wood of hardwood species like Sheesham (or Indian rosewood), walnut, oak and similar is used, the furniture is normally quite heavy in weight. restaurants, furniture for offices and for public spaces.

Market Conditions

Presently the furniture industry is focused more on the domestic market which is expanding very fast on the back of growing consumer spending and a booming housing and construction sector, along with a huge jump in remittances sent by the Pakistanis working abroad in the recent years The industry isn’t prepared to handle large export order it does not have the capacity or backup. Exports will follow mass production facilities are created beside the question of boosting exports did not arise without moving into cheaper, modern furniture production. The industry is presently stuck with Chinioti style traditional furniture.  There is need   of moving away from Shisham into other materials or find an alternate wood.  Pakistan is losing whatever small export market we had with the disappearance of our only solid wood resource  

The traditional and potential clients of furniture are: households, offices’ government institutions; and public institutions. These groups generally tend to use modern furniture; there are very few units who can supply standardized modern furniture. These units manage sales themselves, about 78% of units do so, and 14% sell through retailers whilst 7% subcontract. The product mix is: household furniture 80% ; office furniture 15% ; and furniture for factories 5% .

Existence of international brands

Existence of International Brands has made the competition very challenging. Pakistan will not be competitive in mass furniture segments against furniture giants like China. Authenticity and mastering of raw materials should be made the cornerstones for the competitiveness of “niche” or “ethnic” furniture at the high-end of the market. High perceived value for price, timely deliveries and proper after-sales service are needed for keeping Pakistani furniture a winner. Quality assurance must be improved and Pakistani furniture brands strengthened.

The industry is showing an increasing awareness of its limits and works out a broader vision to reinvent its strength in global furnishing trade. While the potential gains tend to be most attractive to the leaders of the industry, a sustained growth requires balanced development efforts across the supply chain.

Problems faced by the furniture industry of Pakistan            

Domestic furniture industry is suffering because furniture exports to Pakistan from some other countries have increased, whereas, the high cost of furniture-making business is increasing problems for the local furniture manufacturers. The prices of raw materials which include timber, color paints, chipboard, polish materials, and foams have increased manifold. Due to unchecked deforestation, timber production of the country is also suffering.

Wood furniture industry of Pakistan is categorized as being small because old obsolete machinery is used in this industry, which is the reason for higher cost and low output. Traditional wood furniture in Pakistan is heavy and bulky. Pakistani furniture industry needs to go to light-weight and moveable furniture to be exported to the world market where demand is high to meet the needs of offices, shopping malls, buildings and shopping plazas.

Pakistan’s furniture industry remains an essentially fragmented, traditional cottage operation — with a negligible presence in the $250bn world trade — because of supply chain obstacles: obsolete technology, unskilled workers, unavailability of cheaper raw materials, shortage of furniture designers, vanishing traditional Shisham (Indian Rosewood) resource, etc.

The government’s failure to hold the manufacturers’ hand and provide them access to credit for upgrading technology and new raw materials — used for mass production for export markets, train labour, help find markets for products, and prevent the influx of cheaper Chinese furniture in the domestic market, isn’t helping the industry either.

 The government doesn’t even recognize furniture-making as an industry,” lamented Kashif Ashfaq, chairman of the Pakistan Furniture Council, a non-profit private platform created by several major furniture makers by pooling small amounts of their money to promote Pakistani furniture through the organization of exhibitions and road shows at home and abroad.

Many such manufacturers however complain of rising cost of doing business owing to high price of electricity, low labor productivity and use of costly imported and local solid wood and alternate raw materials. This makes products expensive and uncompetitive against imported Chinese furniture in the local market.“If we are able to protect our local market against cheaper imports and encourage our local industry, we can create a supply chain required to boost our overseas sales at a later point,” argued Humanyun.

The problems faced by the sector are: too many sub standard units without the needed qualifications and experience of the market; low quality of products; non availability if standards; uneven quality between items of the same batch; delivery time exceeds the agreed time; goods delivered do not conform to agreed samples.

Technological Factors

Productivity of the units is low and not up to International standards Traditional technology comprises about 50% technology used, whilst 30% technology is upgraded technology and 20% adopted technology. The furniture industry can be grouped as : traditional carved furniture made from solid shesham  or walnut wood , in most cases hand carving is carried out with brass or ivory inlay ; contemporary furniture made from solid wood ; and panel type furniture and cushion works  .Seasoning requires considerable investment; therefore the support institutions listed elsewhere provide this facility.

Furniture Industry technology related problems are :  low level of technology ;  low mechanization ; lack of latest technology ; small and traditional product range ; low quality of product ; lack of testing facilities ; non availability of standards ; and energy prices and availability

Employment Status

The self owned small units employ about 8 people, the partnerships employ about 20 people and the larger limited companies employ on average about 30 people. Employs are temporary who are paid daily or monthly wages. Issues related to man power are : low labor productivity ; non availability of trained technical staff ; non availability of training institutions ; short planning horizon of planners ; lack of real incentives; lack of workshop organization.

Material and Components

Issues related to materials and components are: conformity of quality and type of material with requirements; frequent price changes; terms of payment; availability at time of requirement; and the habit of producing log sleepers has to be eradicated as it has very high wastage .

FAO estimates that Pakistan has 4.2 million ha of forest and planted trees, which equates to 4.8 percent of the total land area. Forty percent of the forest area comprises coniferous and scrub forest in the northern hills and mountains this compares unfavorably with many countries, India has 17.4%, Myanmar has 57.5% , Malaysia has 63% and Germany has 23%. The small forested area translates into restricted supply of wood and products used to manufacture furniture. More substituted materials like: plywood; block board; hardboard; chipboard etc, have to be introduced by the furniture industry.

Pakistan’s furniture has been fairly devoted to solid wood composition, and is therefore heavily dependent on native sheesham wood (rosewood). Despite being a valuable species, sheesham resource has not been sustained in the country. Industry claims widespread exports of unprocessed logs and sawn timber to the Gulf countries, and clandestine trade by opportunistic players in official positions. Inadequate measures have been taken by forest authorities to curb illegal logging and trade, and replenish the timber with proper silvi culture and forest management. Scarcity of sheesham and other local hardwoods is the most serious threat to the Pakistan’s traditional wooden furniture industry.

The wooden furniture manufacturing industry Gujrat is famous for quality furniture manufacturing of solid wood. The basic raw material used for this type of furniture is Sheesham wood. Besides this, Medium Density Fiber (MDF) is also used in furniture manufacturing.

Wood sources include forest department, irrigation department (for trees along canals), high ways department (for trees along roads & High ways) etc. All these departments cut the trees and then auction wood in the form of logs on regular basis. There are certain other sources of the wood one of which is coming from the Azad Kashmir and Northern Areas. With the passage of time the supply of wood is decreasing because of shortage of the forests as well as certain diseases of the tree. According to the Forest Department, the forests cover only 4% area of Pakistan, which is quite low, compared to the desired level of 20-25%. Sheesham wood is mostly used in furniture manufacturing, however other kinds like Keekar (Acacia), Walnut, Diar, Pine etc. are also used but in lesser quantities or on special orders.

Kinds / Types of Woods:

Sheesham wood which is basic raw material is short in supply to fulfill the local market requirement. This shortage has caused a price hike. There is no schedule rate of wood in the market.

Following different types are available;

·         Sheesham

·         Deyodar

·         Popular

·         Pertal

·         Chilgoza

The woods that are fashioned into furniture fall into following three categories:

·         Hardwoods

·         Softwoods

·         Composites

Particle board

There are sixteen particle board plants in the country using wood or bagasse. Of the eleven plants using wood, six are in Sindh, four in Punjab and one in NWFP. The preferred species for particle board are mango (60 percent) and poplar (30 percent) and although plants are not limited by wood supply, mango wood availability is seasonal and spasmodic.

Although the construction industry has begun to use particle board, the bulk is used by large furniture makers. It has yet to catch on with smaller manufacturers and thus, the potential for replacing solid wood in the furniture industry has yet to be fully realised. Due to limited current demand and manufacturers apprehensions about future demand, plants currently operate at an average of only 48 percent capacity although most have sufficient wood supply.

Fiberboard

There are five fiberboard plants in Pakistan, four using wood and one bagasse. Babul (97 percent) and eucalyptus (3 percent) are the preferred species. Fiberboard may be used as a substitute for plywood, which costs four times more than fiberboard. Fiberboard plants, nevertheless, only operate at 23 percent of installed capacity and the fiberboard industry is stagnant.

Plywood manufacture

There are 17 plywood plants in Pakistan; ten of them are in the Punjab, six in Sindh and one in NWFP. The installed capacity of the mills is 1.6 million m³ per shift (eight working hours). One mill operates on three shifts, whereas others operate at less than 50 percent capacity. If they could obtain sufficient supplies of high quality wood, most mills would operate three shifts. Indeed, some plants, to supplement supplies, go through the lengthy and costly process of importing small amounts of teak, keruing and other woods from Southeast Asia. Production of plywood increased from 30 000 m³ in 1996 to 47,000 m³ in 2000.

Entrepreneurs/ Furniture Associations of Pakistan

Following are the active furniture associations;

·         All Pakistan Furniture Exporters Association (registered DGTO)

·         All Pakistan Furniture Makers Association

·         Furniture Manufacturers Association

·         Cottage Furniture Association.

Machinery Equipment and Production

The machinery and equipment in the furniture industry is mainly: not modern; of low efficiency; and not suitable for modern production requirements. The result is low productivity and quality of goods.

Financial aspects

Problems related to financial aspects are: low investment of entrepreneurs into machinery and equipment; shortage of working capital; difficult access to funds; difficulty to obtain loans; and too high interest rates. Finance and investment are the biggest problems of the furniture industry.

Training 

Transition of the furniture industry from a traditional one to a modern one is not possible without technical assistance from abroad. An acute shortage of skilled workforce is hampering exports of furniture and furnishing products from Pakistan. This sector will need around 2 million skilled workers by 2022 and a higher growth in employment is expected from 2017-22 due to swift changes in consumer preferences and popularity of organized furnishing services. Owing to a swift change in technology and rapid innovation, the furniture manufacture    workers and designers must learn to work with many applications.  Vocational and technical institutes hardly meet requirement of the furniture and interior designing industry.   

Existing challenges in terms of gaps in human resources and skill requirements

Challenges in Labour Skills Demand

Labor                                      §      Lack of supervisory skills required for production operations. General lack of skills at preparing Bills of Materials at supervisor level.

§  Less than optimal engagement of appropriate skills of qualified craft workers in the production of furniture

§  Lack of utilization of modern equipment such as computer numerically

controlled machines.

§  Lack of skills required for setting-up, programming and maintenance of machinery.

§  Lack of experience of latest gluing techniques, latest finishing and polishing materials, and application of modern hardware materials like

sliders, concealed hinges etc.

§  Lack of skills in pattern making .

§  Lack of concept of managing to deliver the assigned job Just in Time.

Lack of availability of skilled labour in Gujranwala, Rawalpindi, Karachi and Lahore

Lack of standards and certification

§  Labour is not aware of efficient production techniques

§  Supervisory level skills to improve labor efficiency are also lacking

§  Lack   of   quality   controls,   checks   and   standardisation   according   to international requirements.

Manufacturing techniques

Technology	§	Modern machinery training is virtually non-existent, thus impeding the use of sensible effective equipment3.
Marketing techniques	§ §	Designs are similar and copied across the furniture shops. Lack of marketing and design information for merchandising and export promotion has held back innovative selling.

Government Policies/Regulatory environment

Human Resource Developments

§  Inadequate retailing skills

§  Lack of proper logistic management and investment.

§  Lack of cooperation at intra and inter cluster level.

Challenges in Labor Skills Supply: Non standardization in training curriculum and standards Challenges in setting up training infrastructure; Lack of knowledge of career path amongst youth; Lack of proper work methodology amongst employees; Lack of awareness of furniture sector’s potential as a career option Availability and retention of manpower

Skills Analysis

§  Experience:

o    A vast majority of firms (97%) cited prior experience as an essential requirement for hiring workers. Within these, in about 57% of cases, work experience of 1 to 4 years was considered essential, and in 42% of cases experience of 5 to 10 years was required.

o    It may be the case that experience acts as substitute for formal training and certification: in the absence of these, instead of demanding formally trained workers, firms demand workers who have learned on-the-job elsewhere. These workers having had informal on-the-job training are then considered “skilled” in owners’ views.

§  Current Vacancies:

§   

§   A total of 75 firms (or 17%) reported having vacancies at the time of the survey. Vacancies for assemblers or fitters of furniture were most frequently reported

by firms, followed by bed-frame makers, and carving machine operators. A total of at least 114 vacancies were reported by firms across the 14 trades identified,

§  Current “Skills Shortages”:

o    A deficit of skills can occur as a “skill shortage”. This is measured as the occurrence of “skill shortage vacancies” where “skill shortage vacancy” is defined as one that occurs

when  an  employer  cannot  find  applicants  with  the  right  skills,  qualifications  or

experience to do the job

o    Vacancies that were most frequently considered hard-to-fill due to a shortage of skilled workers were for bed-frame makers (24% of all skill-shortage vacancies were for bed-

frame makers).   Other skill shortages were for furniture fitters (16% of skill-shortage

vacancies),  table-makers  (14  %),  furniture  polishers  (12%),  and  sofa-frame/chair- makers (12%).

o    The other major reason for vacancies being hard-to-fill was that while skilled workers were available, they were demanding high salaries.  (Other reasons such as issues with

location of firm, working hours, absence of benefits were cited only by a small number of respondents).

§  Projected skills needs:

o    Based on the demand projections, an additional sum of 142,964 employees will be required in the furniture sector in Punjab in the coming 6 years (2016-2021). Details of majorly demanded trades are:

§  Bed frame makers 30,628

§  Sofa/ chair makers 21,658

§  Furniture fitters 18,265

§  Carving machine operators 14,361

o    According to the findings of the report bed-frame makers were high in demand which was further accentuated due to the existing shortage of skilled manpower for the trade.

o    Other skills that were in high demand and also expected to persist in the future were

table-makers, chair-makers and furniture fitters.

§  Skill Gaps:

§   

§  Based on the analysis of declared ratings of the importance of various aspects/skills to company performance and the level of proficiency among workers in those aspects, the largest perceived gaps were in the area of managerial skills rather than technical skills associated with furniture making.

o    It was evident that currently firms see a deficit in proficiency in such areas as product pricing, cost reduction strategies, management and finance and quality control. These were found to be problem areas for 60 to 70% of firms (firms that had gaps) and the size of the gaps was generally rated as medium to large.

o    Perceived gaps in technical skills related to the making of furniture were low relative to management skills. Among technical skills related to direct furniture making, lumber grading, wood identification and basic properties of woods, perceived skill gaps were found in 20 to 30% of firms. The size of the skills gaps was generally rated to be small to medium.

o    Other technical skills such as business planning, quality and process control, inventory control, product distribution dealing with changing raw materials were problematic areas in over 50% of firms, and the perceived size of the skills gap was also large.

The Demand for Training in General

§  The sector relied to a large degree on informal training via on-the-job training or learning- by-doing and had a strong preference for the same.

§  While a quarter of firms reported being interested in providing their workers with off-site trainings, when given other options there was a strong preference for on-the-job training: none of the firms picked off-site training as a preferred option when other options were presented.. Furthermore, 72% of firms were willing to give at most one day off to workers for the purpose of training.

§  Respondents were asked for the reasons behind not training their employees. The results were as follows:

o    Of the total number of responses, the most frequently cited reason (49% of responses) was that employees were already trained.

o    Of the remaining responses, 44% of responses cited that training was either unimportant, unproductive and time consuming, or that employees could learn on their own.

o    Lack of training facilities was not a frequently cited reason (only 0.7% of responses chose this as a reason). This suggests that initiatives that provide opportunities and facilities for training may not be sufficient; the value of training will have to be demonstrated for there to be successful.

Human Resource Management

§  With regards to human resource management, firms were asked how they would respond to a decrease in demand in the market for their goods. The most common response was that employers would reduce the number of wage earners. Surprisingly, the least-preferred options were: reducing the benefits paid out to workers or reducing salaries. This shows that most employers are concerned about the psychological impact of reducing rewards given out to their employees.

§  Other common responses included diversifying activities, abandoning activities and improving the quality of products.

§  When asked about the characteristics preferred in new employees, most employers gave

importance to skill and experience overall. Barely 2% of the respondents stated that they would be willing to hire a highly skilled employee with 10 years of experience regardless of

his behavior or attitude. When behavior and attitude was taken into account, 30% of the

respondents claimed to be willing to hire such an employee.

§  If an employee was also educated along with being highly skilled and 10 years of experience, his attitude did not prove to be detrimental since 18.2% were willing to hire such a candidate.

§  The most preferred option overall was that of an educated, semi-skilled candidate with 5 years of experience, regardless of behavior or attitude.

Pakistan’s furniture exports

Total world trade of furniture is estimated to be $23.2 billion. Wood furniture accounts for 77 percent, metal furniture 17 percent, and plastic furniture 6 percent of the total. In 2010, the share of Pakistan in the international furniture market is trivial. Even though the country takes pride in having a history of craftsmanship, it does not share a significant position in the international wood furniture market.   Furniture exports have declined from 102 M US$ in 2013 to 76 MUS$ in 2016.

The export potential of Pakistani furniture is now very high as timber resources for solid type furniture are inadequate to meet the future needs of large volumes production .Only few companies are exporting : traditional Pakistani furniture to US and Europe ; and modified and redesigned furniture of western taste to the Middle East .The present exporters are not facing huge problems in the past only 6% of the production has been exported25% each to US and Europe and 50% to Middle East .There may be opportunities to increase exports to Middle East of : high value, labor intensive (hand carved) style furniture ; knocked down series furniture on the basis of solid wood replacing board e.g. for kitchens . The latter would require a significant improvement in quality and standard of furniture produced.. Due to shortage of material to support this export drive the push to increase exports will require import of suitable material causing a loss of foreign exchange which hardly be compensated by increased exports of finished goods .

Pakistan's exports of wooden furniture amounted to $51 million in 2011. As per World Trade Organization’s statistics, the wooden furniture exports of Pakistan reportedly amounted to almost $51 million in the calendar year (CY) 2011. Whereas, in 2009-2010 the furniture exports of Pakistan ranged between $25 million to $30 million (excluding undocumented exports of an approximate amount of $10 million). However, according to the All Pakistan Furniture Exporters Association (APFEA) founder Mr. Turhan Baig Muhammad, these exports represent a very small portion of the total furniture business of the country. According to him, the local furniture market is almost 50 times stronger than that of the exports. Keeping this in view, the approximate total furniture sale of the country is more than $2.5 billion.  Wood furniture making mostly remains a cottage operation in Chiniot, Gujrat, Lahore, Peshawar and Karachi outside the documented economy. But a few small furniture companies in the organised sector have expanded their production by acquiring technology to produce quality, cheaper modern items — mainly for the Rs7bn domestic market but also for exports. Pakistan is losing its edge in traditional, carved, solid wood furniture, in the domestic market because of its high price, and in the foreign markets due to poor quality and design.  

Pakistan’s business community is not only targeting to enhance exports to China, but is also striving to strengthen the partnership that will facilitate growth in trade with major partners,” he said and cited the UK, Germany and Spain as potential partners. He appreciated the PFC for bringing latest technical knowhow to Pakistan in order to develop the furniture industry and bring it on a par with the international market.

LIST OF PAKISTAN FURNITURE EXPORTERS
S.No	Company Name	Contact Person	Address	Contact No.	Email Address
1	M/s. National Furnishers (Pvt) Ltd	Mr. Saif Durrani	944-J-2, Shahra-e-Naziriya Pakistan, near Expo centre, Johar Town, Lahore	042-35761580-1                 0300-5557846	saif.durrani@yahoo.com
2	M/s. Heaven Furniture (Pvt) Ltd	Mr. Sajjad,  Mr. Khalid Farooq	Hussain Chowk, Lahore Pakistan	042-35758399 , 0306-6249937	sajjadali29@hotmail.com
3	M/s. Al-Mohkam Furnishers (Pvt) Ltd	Mr. Maqbool	43-N, Gulberg-II, Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan	42-5750259 / 5750258                  0321-8476285	mohkamfurnishers@gmail.com
4	M/s. Chenone (Pvt) Ltd	Mr. Umar Farooq	Nishatabad Faisalabad	041 8754472-78, 0323-7778090	chenone@chenabgroup.com
5	M/s. Gourmet Furnisher		Hali Road, Gulberg	42 35776440 –    321 4444467
6	M/s. Enviro Furniture	Mr. Usman Khan	Mega Tower,Ground Floor, 63-B, Main Boulevard, Gulberg -II Lahore.Tower	42 35777526       0320-0840435	Usman.khan@eviro.com.pk
7	M/s. Habitt Furniture	Mr. Aoan	Tipu Sultan Road, Karachi	0321-2226822	aoanmuhammad@hotmail.com.pk
8	M/s. Master Furniture (Pvt) Ltd	Mr. Asim Chaudhry		042-35752620-2                             0345-4483949
9	M/s. N.M. Furniture	Mr. Amjad Farooq	GT Road Gujrat	053-3524397          0300-8474108	info@nmfurnisher.com
10	M/s. Trendline Furniture	Mr. Ansar Mehmood	GT Road Gujrat	053-3517120          0300-8617193	info@trendline.com.pk
11	M/s. Woodco Furniture	Mr. Furrukh Saeed	GT Road Gujrat	055-3890631          0300--8640210	info@woodco.com.pk
12	M/s. Shelwood	Mr. Ali Sheikh	Inside Shelton Hotel Gujranwala	055-3259501          0300-8643199	ali@shelwood.com
13	M/s. Best Buy Furniture	Mr. M. Asim	GT Road Gujrat	053-3510312          0345-6878881	bestbuyfurnishers@yahoo.com
14	M/s. General Furniture	Mr. M.Nazir	GT Road Gujrat	053-3517897            0300-6230142	info@generalfurnishers.com

CHINESE to set up Furniture manufacturing units in Pakistan

Chinese furniture manufacturers have expressed willingness to establish manufacturing units by forming joint ventures in Pakistan and at the same time Pakistani furniture outlets will be set up in different cities of China to promote bilateral trade.

According to Pakistan Furniture Council (PFC) Chief Executive Mian Kashif Ashfaq, Pakistan and China are moving towards greater economic cooperation. A senior PFC delegation is currently on a visit to China along with the prime minister’s entourage in a bid to enhance mutual cooperation in trade and technology. 

Discussing an international exhibition going on in China, Ashfaq said Pakistan’s furniture manufacturers were focusing on contemporary designs with an innovative touch besides showcasing traditional and handmade furniture in the fair. “We want to diversify exports and search new partners for conducting business,” he added.

He pointed out that Pakistan exported furniture and related products worth $8-12 million annually, but the figure did not reflect the industry’s true potential and its capacity to produce high-quality furniture. He suggested that Pakistani exporters should actively participate in international furniture shows and exhibitions in an attempt to highlight their ability to produce eye-catching products.

Ashfaq stressed that Chinese technology could help upgrade Pakistan’s furniture sector and utilise its untapped potential. He was of the view that Pakistan had immense potential to promote itself among the Chinese business community as the country provided excellent business opportunities.  

Assistance

Presently the Industry is served by: Swedish Technical Institute Karachi ; Pak Germen Wood working Center, Peshawar ; and Wood working center , Gujrat . Punjab Small Industries Corporation (PISC) is operating a Service Center for the timber industry in Gujrat .

Intervention

The government needed to put in place a plan to create and develop a sustainable, low cost source of wood raw materials, eradicate illegal timber trade, train designers and labor, organize single-country road shows to market local products in key export markets like the Gulf states, the US, the European Union and Japan.

The PFC chairman pointed out that it would take a longer time to compete internationally in the modern, mass furniture segment. But, he said, Pakistan could still earn a lot of foreign exchange by creating a high-end ‘niche’ market for its traditional and ethnic furniture. “Our industry has no contact with any global brand or store, which is essential to boost exports. The foreign customers of Pakistani furniture mostly comprise of overseas Pakistanis living in the US, Canada, the UK and the Middle East.”

In the absence of an official policy supporting the furniture industry, the PFC is working on a plan to set up common display centers and model units, with the help of Italy, for encouraging small producers to adopt new technologies and boost their local and overseas sales.“We are doing our bit. But the industry will not grow unless the government decides to hold its hand and help remove obstacles in the supply chain,” Kashif concluded.

Other Country Experience

 China was nowhere on the scene in the early 1990s but emerged as the 9th largest furniture exporter in 2000. It is now a top exporter with market share of about two-fifth or $94bn. Malaysia too, grew fast to raise its furniture exports to over $1.5bn with its companies graduating from original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to original brand manufacturers (OBMs) to original design manufacturers (ODMs).

Review of existing forest products related data

Institutions involved in data collection, analysis and dissemination

The following ministries/departments are engaged in collection, analysis and dissemination of forest products data:

• The Office of the Inspector General of Forests, Ministry of Environment, Local Government and Rural Development.
• Ministry of Industries and Production.
• Ministry of Commerce.
• Federal Bureau of Statistics.
• Pakistan Custom Department.
• Central Board of Revenue.
• State Bank of Pakistan.
• Provincial Forest Departments.
• Pakistan Forest Institute

Current users of forest products production and trade data

Current users of FBS forest products production and trade data include:

• The Ministry of Commerce and Industries, Planning & Development Division, (for approval of development projects),
• Export Promotion Bureau
• Provincial Forest Departments (to validate revenue receipts)
• Provincial Planning and Development Boards (to guide recommendations for funding development work),
• The Ministry of Finance,
• Provincial Finance Departments
• The State Bank of Pakistan,
• The Central Board of Revenue.
• Chamber of commerce and trade
• Exporters & importers
• Universities and Educational institutions
• Donor agencies

Use of CHK data is confined to the Central Board of Revenue and the Ministry of Finance.

Forest-related information currently collected

Information presently collected at the local and national level includes the following:

• Forest area under compact plantation
• Forest Area under linear plantation (roadside/rail side canal plantation)
• Area afforested/reforested under different schemes
• Forest Departments Nurseries
• Planting stock available or distributed during tree planting campaigns
• Revenue generated from grazing and grass cutting
• Work done for rangelands improvement
• Work done to develop sericulture (rearing of silkworms)
• Work done for watershed management
• Area subject to felling and thinning
• Out-turn of timber from state forests
• Yield of fuel wood from state forests
• Forest crop damage through natural causes (flood, fire and others)
• Import/export of forest products
• Surveys for removal and production of processed wood