Sri Lanka’s January 2022 apparel exports reached the highest level for that month in the last five years. This performance demonstrates the underlying strength of the industry, which has recovered from ongoing shocks from the impact of the pandemic over the past two years. Sri Lanka’s garment export revenue increased to US$487.6 million in January 2022, surpassing the US$452 million recorded in January 2019, before the pandemic, by 8 percent. Growth over January 2021 export revenues was 23 percent.
“Amidst significant turbulence, this strong performance is testimony to the resilience of Sri Lanka’s apparel industry and augurs well for the industry’s progress towards realizing its goals for 2025,” said Yohan Lawrence, secretary general of the Joint Apparel Association Forum (JAAF), Sri Lanka’s umbrella apparel industry association.
The industry’s vision for 2030 is to make Sri Lanka a global apparel hub by this year; an interim goal is to increase annual export earnings from the apparel industry to $8 billion by 2025.
“Through close cooperation between all key stakeholders, the apparel industry can further increase its already-strong contribution to the national economy, as a major generator of vital foreign exchange and high-quality employment,” Lawrence added.
According to JAAF, the industry’s performance in January 2022 also reflects the success of rigorous safety measures taken by the industry in close cooperation with health authorities to minimize the spread of the pandemic among workers. In addition, in line with the national vaccination campaign, 65 percent of Sri Lanka’s garment sector workers have now received both doses of the vaccine and the booster shot, while 95 percent of workers have received at least both doses. Garment exporters have also been proactive in taking additional safety measures, even before the Omicron variant arrived in Sri Lanka.
“Ensuring the health and safety of the employees of the sector, through continued rigorous adherence to safety and health protocols remains our top priority,” said Saif Jafferjee, managing director of Lanka Garments Ltd. “This approach has sustained the industry’s resilience and reduced the negative impact of Covid-19, while also ensuring business continuity, thus protecting thousands of livelihoods and income sources.”
The latest results also reflect the success of interventions such as the adoption of digital product development technologies, which have helped mitigate supply chain disruptions. Larger companies also supported smaller companies by working with them to manage the rush of export orders.
“January’s impressive performance was also made possible by strong demand from buyers and the healthy pipeline of orders for upcoming months, which are grounds for optimism,” Jafferjee added. “The international outlook remains challenging, however, considering growing tensions in Europe.”
