Dubai: The future of the postal sector is no longer at risk as some would think in this part of the region. Stamps and letters are just a small segment of their overall billion dollar business in other countries, said experts.
This is why postal stakeholders representing different Arab countries came together at a two-day conference in Dubai on Monday to discuss how to continue improving and reinventing the postal network to provide solutions to the world.
The postal world is genius, active and strong, Bishar Hussain, Universal Postal Union (UPU) director-general, told the press during the Arab Regional Conference, which is held every four years to discuss challenges, strategies, and innovative plans for the postal network. The UPU has 192 member countries and Emirates Post Group (EPG) is one of them.
“The post office in many countries around the world has become so advanced that it has become an important part of people’s lives. From being involved in e-commerce to providing financial services, banking, and all types of deliveries, the post office has become like a supermarket for many people. Most of their transactions are done through the post office,” said Hussain.
The post office, he says, has experienced many reforms over the past three decades and has been adjusting to every technology, “The digital revolution hasn’t killed the post office, it has revived it in many ways. For example, online shopping deliveries and other logistics are being handled greatly by the post office at affordable prices for customers and at the same delivery speed compared with other companies.”
However, the competition is there, he says, and post offices should look at new business models and modern services to keep pace with the fast- changing communication environment.
“We are here today to evaluate the progress in implementing the regional development plans of The Doha Postal Strategy, which was formally adopted by the UPU’s member countries in 2012, and to also discuss particular needs of the region and objectives for the next Postal Strategy 2017-2020 to be announced in Istanbul.”
The overall aim of the World Postal Strategy is to have the postal sector recognised as an essential component of the global economy.
Hussain sees three areas as priorities for the next cycle: Making e-commerce efficient, expanding financial services, and having other postal reforms. “It’s all about innovation, integration and inclusion, every region will contribute to the overall implementation of the upcoming strategy, but each country will then decide on their own priorities.”
The UAE’s EPG is expected to focus on improving their quality of service when it comes to being involved in e-commerce, he said.
Speaking about how EPG has kept up with the technological advancement, Fahd Eisa Al Hosani, acting CEO at EPG, said EPG has an experience in combating challenges.
In the face of the transformation, EPG has adopted over 50 services from paying bills and licence renewal to delivering Emirates ID and more. It has also shifted its services online.
“We exerted efforts to apply the Doha strategy based on the challenges we encounter and have made more services available to our customers. We expect to make more changes in our e-commerce. We have already started delivering various commodities like electronic equipment as part of an e-commerce project,” he said.
