Marco Salvadè, President of ACIMIT – the Italian Textile Machinery Manufacturers Association – has underlined the long-term potential of the Middle East and Africa as emerging growth markets for the global textile machinery industry, stressing that development will be gradual but strategically significant.
Emerging Regions Show Strategic Promise for Textile Development
Speaking on the evolution of new textile regions, Salvadè noted that building a competitive textile industry is a step-by-step process rather than an overnight transformation. He pointed to Uzbekistan as a clear example of this journey. Twenty-five years ago, the country was primarily a cotton producer with no significant textile manufacturing base. Over the past two decades, Uzbekistan has progressively developed its value chain, moving from spinning to weaving and now advancing into finishing operations. Today, it has become an important destination for textile machinery suppliers and international exhibitions.
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Salvadè expressed optimism that parts of Africa could follow a similar path. While acknowledging that textile manufacturing requires substantial water resources—making development unsuitable for all countries—he identified North Africa, Southern Africa, as well as Ethiopia and Kenya, as regions with the right characteristics to attract textile investment.
According to Salvadè, beyond infrastructure and natural resources, the success of textile industrialization depends heavily on mindset and long-term planning. The textile industry, he emphasized, plays a crucial social role by creating large-scale employment opportunities, making it a powerful tool for economic development and job creation across emerging markets.
ACIMIT views the Middle East and Africa as strategic regions where sustained investment, education, and industry collaboration could gradually build strong and competitive textile ecosystems in the years ahead.
