2 AUGUST 2011 | HIRAT, AFGHANISTAN

 

CHALLENGE Once an active cotton plant, the Hirat Cotton Mill, located in the Pashtun Bridge area of Guzara District in Hirat Province, stood idle for more than 30 years. USAID and global development alliance partners were looking for a cost effective location to house their cashmere processing facility instead of building something new.

 

INITIATIVE With technical advice from USAID, the former cotton mill, occupying 125 acres, is being primed as the modernized Hirat Fibers and Textiles Industry Park. A new public-private renovation partnership will be using the facilities as a cashmere processing facility. Owned by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the location will offer renovated rental units for textile manufacturing companies. The partnership will facilitate trade in natural fibers and will develop the area into an industrial cashmere processing cluster.

Ten rental units will be leased to companies investing in processing of natural fibers. The ministry retains ownership, and will manage the shared facilities from rental revenue. Tenants will renovate and maintain their individual leased units.

 

RESULTS  Three occupants have already committed to leasing six of the 10 units: Traitex, a leading Belgian processor; Cashmere Fibres International, a leading United Kingdom based processor, and Habib Omid Co, a well-established local company. The USAID-supported Hirat Fibers and Textiles Industry Park will create 44 jobs directly and support more than 10,000 indirect jobs by stimulating the creation of new companies, broadening the product value chain and enabling the growth of the local economy.