Vietnam’s garment, textile, footwear sectors may take long to recover

As Vietnam’s garment, textile and footwear sectors have been hit hard by the pandemic, firms may take long to recover, say experts. Some businesses said they are facing penalties for late delivery and the risk of losing orders for the next season. Prospects for this year and 2022 have turned gloomy, Phan Thi Thanh Xuan, general secretary of the Vietnam Leather and Footwear Association (LEFASO), said.

Estimates showed that a footwear firm with about 9,000 employees needs to spend nearly $1 million on preventive measures, while the costs of input materials have risen by 5-10 per cent.

To maintain orders for the following year, Thanh Xuan has proposed easing of restrictions in three phases.

Chairman of the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS) Vu Duc Giang said if the pandemic continues to spread, firms may not be able to maintain and stabilise operations and retain customers.

To restore production, the ministry of industry and yrade (MoIT) will remove bottlenecks and provide the most possible support to help factories resume operation and take advantage of orders at year end in the European and US markets, according to news agency.

MoIT will also step up the implementation of a development strategy for garment-textile and footwear to 2030, with a vision to 2035, and the building of a programme on sustainable development of the sectors until 2030.

It will strive to expand export markets, capitalise on advantages of existing free trade agreements, diversify export items and improve the competitive edge of products and brands.

News Source: Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)