Pakistan could unlock significant economic and environmental gains by recycling its vast textile waste, with experts warning that failure to act may deepen resource strain and lost export opportunities.

Pakistan Furniture Council Chief Executive Mian Kashif Ashfaq said the country has the potential to transform discarded textiles into high-value, sustainable exports. He argued that such a shift could help address pressing challenges including climate change, resource shortages and rising poverty.

Pakistan generates approximately 270,125 metric tons of textile waste annually, according to the figures cited. Ashfaq noted that recycling this material could conserve large volumes of water while reducing pressure on land and energy resources.

He pointed to global examples, including exports of used garments from the European Union, which are processed locally and re-exported as finished products. This model, he suggested, demonstrates the viability of a circular textile economy.

The official also highlighted the potential for employment generation, particularly for women, through value-added production such as handbags and other consumer goods made from recycled fabrics and leather.

Ashfaq stressed the need for stricter controls on textile dumping and called for policies to develop a mature recycling industry. He argued that with sustained effort, Pakistan could emerge among the leading exporters of circular and sustainable textiles within a decade.

The proposal underscores growing interest in sustainable manufacturing as a pathway to economic resilience, while addressing environmental constraints facing the country's textile sector.