Almost all 30 mobile phone assembly units in the country have been shut down, three of which are run by foreign brands. The manufacturer says it has run out of raw materials amid restrictions on importing raw materials, putting the future of around 20,000 jobs at risk.
Most companies release workers after paying half of their April salary. It is said that they will be recalled as soon as production resumes.
In an interview with Dawn, the mobile phone maker expressed dismay that the company had to send its employees home for Ramadan.
Blaming the inefficient and strange policies of the Ministry of Treasury, he said: “My house has three mobile production units, all of which have been closed.”
He was referring to government policies that make it difficult for importers to obtain letters of credit (LC). This is a document from the bank that guarantees that payments from the buyer to the seller will be received on time and in the correct amount. This has stopped the import of key equipment and parts used in the production of mobile phones.
The Pakistan Mobile Manufacturers Association (PMPMA) in a recent letter informed the IT Ministry that the domestic supply of mobile phones has almost stopped and the market is also facing shortage of mobile phones.
The letter, written by the president of the association, Haji Abdul Rahman, stressed that the situation is equally alarming for consumers who have to pay exorbitant prices for domestically produced mobile devices.
Rahman told Dawn that the prices of cheap imported handsets and domestic assembly units are approaching.
In a letter to the Ministry of Information Technology, he announced that the country’s mobile industry, which consists of 30 manufacturers, including three foreign companies, is on the verge of closure as many investors may shift their focus to other sectors.
He said: The company’s raw materials are almost finished. Most of them are from China, South Korea and Vietnam.
Mobile phone makers say the industry must import $170 million in parts and components every month to operate.
