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T
HE POSTAL SECTOR
’
S
role in the Information Society, and
in particular its contribution to reducing the digital divide,
has been the subject of ongoing discussions at the
Universal Postal Union (UPU) since Phase One of the World
Summit on the Information Society in Geneva in 2003. UPU
also adopted a resolution on the subject at its 2004 Congress in
Bucharest. In fact the UPU and postal sector stakeholders have
a lot to contribute in meeting the challenges of the digital revo-
lution. There have been big developments in the postal sector
over the years, mainly due to technological advances, increased
competition and the liberalization of markets. Through the judi-
cious use of new technologies, the postal sector has achieved a
prime position at the heart of today’s Information Society.
In addition to the numerous electronic services introduced
by individual Posts, UPU, with the active assistance of its
member countries, has developed a whole range of applications
and software enabling public postal operators to offer essential
services matched by improved service quality. This software
enables them to track mail items more closely and makes inter-
national money transfers more efficient, while ensuring their
security. Furthermore, UPU’s Quality of Service Fund, financed
by contributions from industrialized countries, is an excellent
example of global partnerships for cooperation and develop-
ment. This allows developing and least developed countries to
acquire the technology they need to access the universal postal
network and puts it within the reach of even the smallest and
remotest countries.
“Thanks to the new technologies adopted by the postal sector,
communicating with remote areas abroad is no longer a ques-
tion of sending messages in bottles,” says Edouard Dayan, UPU
Director General: “Through its integrated physical, electronic
and financial network, the postal sector is helping not only to
reduce the digital divide, but also to bridge the economic gap
by enabling developing countries to acquire these technologies
and know-how and giving them access to the markets of indus-
trialized countries.”
The global postal network – a natural
gateway to the Information Society
The Universal Postal Union
VSAT technology has enabled Kenya’s rural communities to rapidly access the information superhighway, with post offices serving as the access ramp
Photo: Universal Postal Union ©