How Posts are facilitating international trade is under the spotlight at the 25th Universal Postal Congress.
On the back of Congress adopting a resolution urging governments to use the postal network to boost trade last week, the Universal Postal Union now has the mandate to help Posts bring simplified export processes to their business customers.
The resolution encourages all stakeholders to cooperate to help micro, small and medium-sized businesses to reach their potential as economic motors.
A trailblazer in this area is Brazil Post’s Exporta Fácil programme. It enabled 170 million USD worth of exports to leave the country in 2012 alone. The scheme is targeted primarily at small and medium-sized enterprises, helping to ship their products abroad quickly.
Since 2000, 1.8 billion USD worth of goods had been processed by Exporta Fácil, said Rose Mary Antunes, adviser at the Brazilian communications ministry. “More than 12 million businesses in Brazil have used the scheme. It is a very successful project, which can help boost local economies,” Antunes said, speaking in Doha, Qatar.
And the programme has been rolled out in Ecuador, Peru, Uruguay and Colombia, after being modified to suit local conditions, revealed Antunes. Argentina, Bolivia and Chile are in the process of adopting similar schemes. Serbia has implemented its own programme based on the Brazilian model.
In Ecuador, the Post is looking back at a successful 11 months, according to its general manager, Roberto Cavanna. More than 5,000 export consignments valued at one million USD have taken place during that time. “The results are extraordinary and the government supports the project,” Cavanna revealed.
Now that the Congress resolution has been adopted, the UPU will embark on widening the reach of such activities. “At the UPU level, we have an obligation to act as a centre of excellence, to look at the best projects initiated by Posts and see how we can add value at the international level,” stated Alassane Guiro, UPU expert on market development.
In November 2011, the Brazilian government and the UPU signed an agreement to provide the Exporta Fácil methodology to all member countries.
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