New Director General of the UPU announced

Masahiko Metoki of Japan has been elected the new Director General of the UN specialized agency for postal matters – the Universal Postal Union.

In the first round of votes, held at the 27th Universal Postal Congress in Abidjan, Côte d‘Ivoire, he won 102 votes, compared to 40 votes for Pascal Clivaz of Switzerland and 14 votes for Jack Hamande of Belgium.

Masahiko Metoki has enjoyed an extensive career in the public service, particularly in the postal sector. He first joined Japan’s Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications in 1983. Mr. Metoki later took on the role of Postmaster at the Nihonmatsu Post Office in Fukushima Prefecture, eventually moving back to the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications’ Postal Savings Bureau as its Director of the International Service Office.

In 2003, he made his way back to Japan Post, where he continued his work in the postal savings business until he was called upon to join the organization’s privatization efforts as Director of the Office for the Promotion of Privatization of Postal Services in the Cabinet Secretariat. Since the Post’s privatization, Mr. Metoki has held executive roles related to the Post’s initial stock offering, governance and international postal affairs.

In addition to his experience with the Post, Mr. Metoki has worked with the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Embassy of Japan in Thailand. Mr. Metoki represented Japan as Chair of the Postal Operations Council since 2012. He has also chaired the 22nd Congress committee for postal financial services and the Postal Operations Council’s Postal Financial Services Group.