UPU Director General highlights role posts play in empowering marginal communities

Universal Postal Union (UPU) Director General Bishar A. Hussein has highlighted how posts help more of the world’s citizens to participate in the economy. Speaking at the annual World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) in Geneva on Tuesday (13 June), Hussein said: ““By our very nature of being able to offer services everywhere, sometimes beyond strict profit motives, we are in a better position than most industries to empower economically weak and marginal communities to realize their potential and enable them to participate in national development.”

Hussein noted that several projects the UPU has launched recently  are directed at improving inclusion, such as financial services, the Ecom@Africa e-commerce project, and .POST, a secure top-level domain being used by Posts to offer services such as web shops.

“Our current primary focus is on the development of electronic commerce, financial services and diversification of products through innovation,” added Hussien. “All these address empowerment of communities through making access to basic economic services, including trade, achievable and affordable.”