Tag: Mail Services

Emirates and Indian Posts start exchanging electronic money transfers

Posted by | May 5, 2008 | |

The Emirate and Indian postal services have joined the UPU’s International Financial System network to offer their customers a new possibility for sending money electro-nically.

In addition to being eco-nomical, a new electronic money-transfer service launched by the two postal operators is fast (recipients receive their money within hours) and offered in many post offices. As part of a first phase, customers in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) can send transfers from any post office in the country to 97 main post offices and more than 2,400 branches in the regions of Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkota and Kerala. The service will soon be extended to all of India.

At the moment, money sent to India is delivered directly to the recipient’s home, but more options will be added later.

At a worldwide level, the exchange corridor between India and the UAE is among the 10 most important ones in terms of money transfers from migrants. According to the World Bank, close to 2.2 million Indian immigrants reside in the UAE. Each year, migrants from all over the world send 27 billion USD to India.

The transfers between the Indian and Emirate Posts are possible thanks to the IFS solution, the backbone of the UPU’s international electronic postal payments network. Ninety countries are currently using or testing IFS, which is bringing solutions to issues around money transfers, international migration and poverty reduction.

India, China and the UAE are the most recent large countries to have adopted IFS in order to improve and facilitate money transfers for their customers.

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Working towards a greener postal sector

Posted by | May 5, 2008 | |

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Universal Postal Union (UPU) have agreed to work together to slash the CO2 emissions caused by members of the postal sector.

Under the agreement signed in Berne last week by Achim Steiner, Executive Director of UNEP, and Edouard Dayan, Director General of the UPU, UNEP will help the UPU calculate the volumes of greenhouse gases generated by the postal sector, using a clearly-defined methodology.

The UPU’s International Bureau is shortly to launch a survey of the organization’s 191 member countries, to collect data on the sector as a whole, including buildings and vehicles, the mileage these vehicles cover, and the volumes of fuel consumed. Once this information has been gathered, UNEP will help the UPU develop a method to quantify the greenhouse gas emissions generated by the postal sector. The UPU and UNEP will then offer postal operators a range of solutions to cut these emissions, and will monitor the impact of these measures from year to year.

The issue of the environment will be discussed extensively at the Congress, and Mr. Steiner will take part in the General Debate on 25 July 2008, which will be attended by heads of international organizations, representatives of the governments and operators of the UPU member countries, and other decision-makers from across the sector.

According to even the most modest estimates, the world postal sector comprises over five million staff (twice that number if we consider the wider sector) and 660,000 postal establishments, and uses some 250,000 motorcycles, over 600,000 cars, vans and trucks, and hundreds of aircraft to deliver mail to the four corners of the world… Not to mention the tonnes of paper used daily in postal communications. The sector therefore has a significant role to play in cutting greenhouse gas emissions.

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Postal codes at risk (Danmark)

Posted by | May 5, 2008 | |

The arrival of foreign competition and liberalisation of the national postal service may result in new postal codes

Liberalisation of postal services may be the demise of the nation’s 40-year-old postal codes as the system, devised and administered by Post Danmark, may undergo drastic reform in the upcoming liberalisation of the nation’s postal service.

One proponent of such a reform is Citymail.

Jarle Trandokken, Norwegian state-owned Citymail’s Danish chief executive, said that the number of postal codes needed to be increased to encompass more addresses and making sorting easier.

To speed up the sorting process easier, Post Danmark invested in advanced sorting machines for scanning post, and Trandokken said it was unreasonable for new players on the market to have to make such substantial investments.

The Road and Transport Agency, the body responsible for inspection of the postal services, acknowledged that a postal liberalisation also came with considerations of reform in the area. However, Mogens Antonsen, a consultant with the agency said the present postal code system was not considered an obstacle.

In the mean time, Helge Israelsen, Post Danmark’s chief executive, said that he was unwilling to change the present postal system to accommodate Citymail’s objections.

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Royal Mail goes digital (UK)

Posted by | May 5, 2008 | |

After trials on hand-held tracker/scanners carried out by 700 Royal Mail postal workers ended in March, Royal Mail is to expand the installation of the technology throughout its fleet of vehicles.

The scanner/trackers (PDAs) are already in use by other postal and parcel operators but Royal Mail has been testing different types to establish which work best in the field. So far, none have been a great success for postal workers operating on foot, but one has been selected for use in vehicles throughout the network. The name of the manufacturer will be announced shortly.

The scanners include an emergency 999 facility to provide added protection for users, the ability to scan signatures for delivery verification, as well as log collection points in real time via GPS.

The CWU, which was initially concerned that the introduction of the technology would enable Royal Mail to ‘spy’ on workers, has agreed that the new equipment would provide an important enhancement to services as well as added protection for operatives – providing a code of conduct is agreed between the CWU and Royal Mail.

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Irish Postal Operator Broadens Online Facilities

Posted by | May 5, 2008 | |

An Post, has recently added the facility to buy or renew TV Licences as part of its online facilities

Communications Minister Eamon Ryan last week launched www.tvlicence.ie, a handy and secure new website facility for buying and renewing a Television Licence.

As well as buying or renewing a licence, householders and businesses can use the new on-line facility to update their contact details, should they move house or premises during the term of their licence.

TV Licence Manager at An Post, Mary Harrahill, explained that buying or renewing a licence through www.tvlicence.ie is quick, secure and very easy to do: “First-time buyers simply key in their name and address. Existing customers use the reference number and PIN number displayed on the renewal notice. After confirming their details, customers can choose to pay by Laser, Visa or Mastercard. They can print off the payment confirmation and the new licence will be posted to them within ten working days, it’s simple as that.

1,059,682 licences were purchased by householders and businesses in 2007. A Television Licence costs EUR 160 per year. Every household, business, holiday home or other premises with a television must have a TV Licence. General TV Licence information is available on the website in Irish and eleven other languages including Chinese, Polish, Lithuanian, Portuguese and Spanish.

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