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The Textile, Clothing and Footwear industry has suffered a staggering decline in employment, plummeting from 20,000 workers to just 5,000, according to TCF Council President.

TCF President Inbamalar Wanarajan says this was discussed during their annual general meeting last month.

She says the labour shortage attributed to a dearth of training opportunities is acting as a major bottleneck in production.

“The TCF industry has collectively presented a written submission for TSLS and TVET for training purposes to ensure continuous supply of skilled labors.”

Wanarajan says this will allow them to sustain production capacities and pursue further growth opportunities in new markets and contribute to the Fijian economy in terms of creating more employment and foreign exchange revenue.

She adds that countries like Bangladesh and Vietnam are continuously increasing training institutes to get steady supply of trained works and this may be the major reason for their success in the garment industry.