Pakistan has taken a significant step toward upgrading its marble and granite sector as the Pakistan Council of Scientific and Industrial Research and the All Pakistan Marble Manufacturers Association formed a joint technical working group to address long standing structural and technology gaps in the industry. The initiative aims to enhance value addition and improve Pakistan’s global competitiveness in dimension stone exports.
The decision was taken during a high level consultative meeting chaired by PCSIR Director General Dr Sarwat Ismail. The working group will develop a comprehensive framework focusing on environmentally compliant processing phased upgradation technology transfer workforce training and stronger collaboration between research institutions and the private sector.
Industry representatives highlighted that Pakistan holds vast reserves of marble granite onyx and other dimension stones but continues to rely heavily on outdated extraction and processing methods. Chairman of the All Pakistan Marble Industries Association Muhammad Bilal Khan Mohmand said the use of traditional blasting techniques has limited the production of export quality blocks resulting in Pakistan’s share of the global marble trade remaining close to one percent.
Participants stressed the need to strengthen the role of PCSIR’s Dimension Stone Centre by aligning applied research with market demand and improving access to modern machinery. They also emphasised enhancing technology transfer mechanisms to help local producers adopt international standards in quarrying processing and finishing.
The meeting underscored the importance of building linkages with leading marble producing countries including Italy Turkey Brazil China and Iran. Such cooperation would support skills development exposure to advanced technologies and gradual expansion of Pakistan’s footprint in international marble and granite markets.
Stakeholders also called for the establishment of international standard testing and certification facilities practical training programmes aligned with export requirements and environmentally responsible utilisation of marble slurry and waste. It was agreed that regular structured engagement between PCSIR and the industry is essential to ensure effective research outcomes efficient use of public resources and sustainable growth of Pakistan’s dimension stone sector.
