Digitalizing African postal : Experts from member countries of the Pan African Postal Union (PAPU) on Tuesday said that digitalization of postal services across Africa was critical to meeting globally-acceptable standards in the sector.
They made this known while speaking at the ongoing inaugural meeting of the operations and technology committee of PAPU in Abuja, which Nigeria is hosting.
While explaining the purpose of the event, the Post Master General (PMG) Nigerian Postal Services (NIPOST), Dr Ismail Adewusi, said member states were gathered to deliberate on issues affecting the postal sector.
He said, “The Operations and Technology committee of Pan African Postal Union, which Nigeria is chairman, has the responsibility to look out for other African postal outlets to ensure that their postal services attain best global standards and acceptable practices.”
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Adewusi noted that the world was moving into the digital age, making postal services become seamless globally, so the African postal sector could no afford to be left behind.
In her address, Assistant Secretary General, PAPU, Jessica Ssengooba from Uganda, said every sector was facing a digital disruption and the postal sector had to live up to its responsibilities.
She noted that the focus of the meeting was for member countries to come up with issues that were challenging the postal sector, propose solutions to be adopted and implemented.
Ssengooba said, “Digitalizing postal services is very important and we cannot do without it because it will help us to improve on our services and be up to date with globally acceptable standards and practices.
“Automating postal services is necessary, we would come up with new products and diversification of services too is very much needed.
“The major challenge we have is global competition and we are involved in beneficial partnerships so that we can reach the last mile and ensure effective services.”
45 African countries joined the operations and technology committee of the Pan African Postal Union meeting both online and virtually.
Digitalizing African postal /NAN
