India Africa Postal Leaders Meet Held to Strengthen Postal Sector Collaboration

The meet's key theme is capacity building through study visits, showcasing India’s successful service delivery model via its extensive post office network.

The ‘India Africa Postal Leaders Meet’ is being organized in India from June 21st to 25th, 2024, to enhance relationships between the postal administrations of African countries and India. This initiative is part of the “South-South and Triangular Cooperation” programme of the Universal Postal Union, supported by India Post and the United States Postal Service.

This event aligns with India's recent initiatives, such as the ‘Voice of Global South Summit’, the India-Africa Forum, and the inclusion of the African Union in the G20 during India's Presidency in 2023. Postal organizations from 22 African countries have sent 42 heads of postal administrations and senior management personnel as delegates to this landmark meet.

The meet's key theme is capacity building through study visits, showcasing India’s successful service delivery model via its extensive post office network. India Post’s approach of blending digital services with traditional postal service delivery has gained international recognition, prompting the coordination of this meet by the Universal Postal Union.

Postal services in developing countries face similar challenges and play a crucial role in sustainable development and financial inclusion. The Postal Leaders Meet provides a platform for mutual learning and exploring new collaborative opportunities to address these challenges effectively.

During the study visits, India Post is demonstrating various services, including e-commerce parcels, Dak Niryat Kendras (postal centres supporting export), postal financial services, and services offered by the India Post Payments Bank. Citizen-centric services like Aadhaar-enabled services, Passport services, and Digital Life Certificates are also being showcased, with a special focus on the transformative Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and Aadhaar’s role in enhancing India's digital infrastructure.

Addressing the delegates on June 24th in New Delhi, Minister of State for Communications Shri Chandra Sekhar Pemmasani emphasized India’s advocacy for close cooperation to achieve the UPU’s mission of a single global postal territory through seamless postal supply chains. He highlighted India’s commitment to the Global South and Africa, ensuring collaboration in cross-border e-commerce and financial inclusion, supported by effective technology enablement. He also assured continued support in training and capacity building through the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) programme.

Minister of Communications and Development of North Eastern Region, Shri Jyotiraditya M Scindia, praised the successful organization of the Summit. He stated, “This initiative underscores our commitment to fostering stronger Indo-Africa ties through postal services. I am confident that this program will facilitate the exchange of best practices and enhance the global postal network for last-mile service delivery.”

The delegates expressed their gratitude to the Department of Posts, Government of India, for hosting a productive event aligning with the shared vision and goals for the postal sector in the Global South.

The event was attended by senior representatives from the Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Commerce, Directorate General of Foreign Trade, Customs, UIDAI, NPCI, India Post Payments Bank, and Members of the Postal Services Board.