The Hon Michelle Rowland MP
Australia to invest in strengthening postal services across the Pacific
The Australian Government and Australia Post will today announce a new Pacific Postal Development Partnership to strengthen postal services in the Pacific and sign a joint declaration with the Universal Postal Union (UPU) and Asian Pacific Postal Union (APPU).
Announced in Bangkok on the sidelines of the 13th APPU Congress, the partnership will improve the efficiency and security of postal services between Australia and Pacific island countries, benefiting consumers and businesses, including the estimated 200,000 people living in Australia with Pacific Island heritage.
To support the three-year partnership, the Government has provided Australia Post with a $450,000 contribution to target improvements to postal systems, processes, technology and training in the region.
This funding will be supplemented by Australia Post’s expertise and in-kind support, including equipment that can help meet the needs of Pacific postal operators.
Today’s signing of this landmark joint declaration both brings Australia closer together with key multilateral institutions in the postal sector and aligns our respective efforts.
The declaration will enable a coordinated approach to regional postal development, supporting Pacific island countries to continue to modernise their postal services, capture emerging opportunities and new markets, and showcase the value of the region’s postal sector globally.
The declaration will be signed by Australia’s Ambassador to Thailand, Dr Angela Macdonald PSM, Australia Post’s General Manager for International Services, Mr Michael Cope, the Director-General of the UPU, Mr Masahiko Metoki, and the Secretary General of the APPU, Mr Lin Hongliang.
Postal services in the Pacific are some of the most under-developed as measured by the UPU’s Postal Development Index. This impacts businesses and consumers through slower average delivery times, disruption and delays.
With the ongoing digitisation of the global economy, further investments will boost the ability of Pacific island countries to capture new market opportunities and meet consumer expectations to deliver secure, timely and efficient postal services.
The Government and Australia Post will work with Pacific postal operators and governments to identify specific activities to be delivered to meet their individual needs. The first activities are expected to commence by the end of 2022.
This partnership builds on Australia Post’s annual contribution of over $1.3 million to the Universal Postal Union to support global postal cooperation, and additional contributions such as a four-year commitment to further the global postal sector’s response to climate change.
For more information on International Post, visit https://www.infrastructure.gov.au/media-technology-communications/post/international-post.
Quotes attributable to the Minister for Communications, the Hon Michelle Rowland MP:
“Postal services have played a fundamental role in connecting people and businesses within countries and across borders for centuries, helping to build cultural and economic links, and keeping people informed and families connected. The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated that this mission remains as relevant as ever.
“The Australian Government’s contribution will support the Pacific engaging with the world and taking advantage of new economic opportunities and people-to-people links, as well as improve postal services for Australians engaging with the Pacific.
“Aligning Australia’s contribution with the longstanding work of the Universal Postal Union and Asian-Pacific Postal Union, will achieve a coordinated approach that best supports our Pacific partners.”
Quotes attributable to the Minister for International Development and the Pacific, the Hon Pat Conroy MP:
“Australia is pleased to be working in partnership with the Pacific family to make our region better connected.
“Postal services across the Pacific have an important role to play as our region recovers from the economic impacts of COVID-19.
“Australia is committed to multilateral cooperation to uphold the international rules based order and address global challenges -- and the postal sector is no exception. This new Pacific partnership underscores our commitment.”
Quotes attributable to Group Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Australia Post, Paul Graham:
“Australia Post is extremely proud to work with our postal partners across the Pacific to provide our deep expertise and help develop tailored solutions to enable the provision of mail and parcel services for all.
“As part of this, we will meet with them to tailor our assistance to their specific needs – whether that be sharing our knowledge and expertise to the supply of equipment and technology.
“Australia Post is particularly well placed to help these nations both respond to the challenges and take advantage of opportunities from the acceleration in eCommerce, which will benefit the entire region.”