The International Organization for Standardization to work hand in hand with the UPU

Alan Bryden, Secretary General of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), and Edouard Dayan, Director General of the Universal Postal Union, concluded a cooperation agreement today aimed at strengthening the exchange of information for finalizing standards of mutual interest to the two organizations.

Closer cooperation in standardization work has become necessary in an increasingly specialized technological environment. Furthermore, liberalization and postal sector developments have led to the development of new standards to meet the needs of the sector and its customers for enhanced quality of service.

As postal operators diversify their activities, incorporate e-commerce into their parcel and logistics services and develop their financial services, they need to operate in a standardized environment.

As Edouard Dayan pointed out, “The UPU manages a three-dimensional network: physical, electronic and financial. We have already developed many standards for the processing of physical mail. We now need to focus on standards for electronic and financial services. The cooperation agreement with the ISO is intended to do just that.”

As a standards organization, the UPU has already developed nearly a hundred technical standards for the postal sector. The agreement will enable the UPU to better position itself on the world stage and help it to prepare and better disseminate postal standards, particularly for financial and electronic services, that are recognized internationally, not only by postal experts but also by standards experts in other activity sectors.

One feature of the agreement is the creation of a contact committee of six officials responsible for implementing the provisions of the agreement. Thus, the ISO and the UPU will each be able to incorporate in its own standards references to the other organization’s standards.