Pakistan’s leather sector, the country’s third-largest export industry, is entering a pivotal phase of transformation. As global markets increasingly demand deforestation-free, transparent, and ethically sourced supply chains, the absence of a structured traceability system poses a growing risk to competitiveness and market access.

Pakistan’s leather sector has traditionally relied on fragmented paper records and basic trader lists, lacking a structured digital traceability system. Meanwhile, shifting legislations in the EU, US, and UK increasingly demand deforestation-free and ethically verified supply chains, and buyers are moving from trust-based sourcing to data-driven verification. In this context, the lack of traceability is not merely a technical gap; it represents a strategic risk to Pakistan’s export competitiveness and long-term market access, especially as the country is currently classified as a standard-risk exporter under the EUDR, which will become mandatory by December 2026.

This project ‘Pakistan Leather Sector: Traceability, Cleaner Production and Circularity’ recognises that traceability is now essential for sustaining growth in the global leather trade and aims to address this gap through the piloting of a digital traceability toolkit.