Essential Factors for the Advancement of the Yarn Manufacturing Sector in Sri Lanka: Implications of the Socio-Economic Environment

Abstract

The textile and apparel sector are well-represented in the industrial sector of the Sri Lankan economy. It has become Sri Lanka’s largest export industry since 1986. Enhancing quality and decreasing expenses are the main priorities for the Sri Lankan apparel sector, highlighting the necessity for deliberate growth. More significant export revenue and considerable import expenditure on raw materials like yarn, fabric, etc., for apparel manufacturing, is a common phenomenon in the Sri Lankan apparel sector leading to less economic value generation. Thus, this paper studies the key factors affecting the advancement of the yarn manufacturing sector in Sri Lanka and the implications of the turbulent socio-economic environment. To address the identified research problem, this study proposes a conceptual framework through a systematic literature review, which identifies the essential factors for the advancement of the yarn manufacturing sector in Sri Lanka under the current socio-economic environment. The Partial Least Square Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) method was used to capture the interactive relationships among the key factors and the advancement of the yarn manufacturing sector in Sri Lanka. Data was gathered using questionnaires from employees in the yarn manufacturing industry, textile industry, and textile engineering students in Sri Lanka. The results show that the quality of raw materials, machines and technology and better investors have a positive relationship with the advancement of the yarn manufacturing sector in Sri Lanka. Keywords: Apparel Industry, PLS-SEM and Yarn Manufacturing.