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Post Date: 5 August 2024

Exploring the Current State of Circular Economic Transformation in Pakistan's Textile Industry
Abstract:

Textile manufacturing is considered the second most polluting industry in the world due to its overconsumption of resources and environmental impact. This problem indicates the need for the Circular Economy (CE) to achieve transformation in the sector. Empirical evidence of the CE in textiles is in its early stages in a developing economy like Pakistan, which has motivated the present study. The overarching research question is steered toward evaluating the current resource strategies, circular business innovations (CBI), underlying transitional factors, and dynamics of Pakistan's textile industry. Based on 26 case studies and local expert interviews, the research strives to assert what a local ecosystem that enables a sustainable transition should look like. A qualitative methodology and descriptive statistics have been applied to a multiple case study of textile enterprises.

Findings indicate that dominant R strategies observed across the textile supply chain include R8-Recycle, R2-Reduce, and R3-Reuse. In addition, open and closed CBI are commonly practiced among them, with narrowing, slowing, and closing loops found to be equally dominant while expanding the looping model. However, more focus has been observed on finding end-of-pipe solutions rather than rethinking product design. The denim-producing companies have been observed to be more innovative in circular initiatives than apparel and home textile-producing companies.

Moreover, firms face high external pressure from downstream customers to make random attempts to achieve sustainability. International NGOs have a pivotal role in initiating knowledge and experimentation among these companies compared to the negligible role of the government. Companies should identify improvement opportunities to overcome internal challenges through awareness-building and capacity development. The lack of government policies is a major external barrier that impedes the facilitating ecosystem for upscaling of circular practices and innovations. The study reinforces that mutual learning and collaborative multi-stakeholder efforts can support the continuous improvement of textile enterprises and help them maintain a competitive advantage in the region. 

Keywords: Pakistan; circular economy; textile industry; circular business model; circular business innovations; circular transformation.

Speaker(s) : Ms. Naila AZHAR
PhD student in ESPM Program, supervised by Prof. Benjamin STEUER and Prof. Kira MATUS
Date : 19 Aug 2024 (Monday)
Time : 10:00 am
Venue : Room 2302 (Lifts 17-18), 2/F Academic Building, HKUST