Japan is lending its support to the UPU in establishing a global disaster risk reduction and management policy for the postal sector.
The UPU's Bishar Hussein and Japan's Shigeki Suzuki sealed the agreement
Shigeki Suzuki, director general of the postal services policy department at the Japanese ministry of internal affairs and communications, and UPU Director General Bishar A. Hussein signed a cooperation agreement on this matter on 19/04/2013.
The agreement comes with a voluntary contribution of some 350,000 Swiss francs for disaster reduction projects and building postal sector resilience.
“When the Great East Japan Earthquake happened in March 2011, we realized that postal services were a fundamental means of communication and reconstruction for countries,” said Suzuki, who added that a Japanese proposal adopted at the Doha Congress formed the basis for this commitment. He thanked member countries for their support at the time of the catastrophe.
A subgroup of the UPU Council of Administration’s Sustainable Development Project Group, expected to be created next week during the body’s annual session, will oversee policy development and the exchange of best practices among member countries.
Japan’s postal regulator will second an expert to the International Bureau to assist with the work.
The new United Nations five-year action plan encourages UN specialized agencies to include climate change and disaster risk management into their activities.
In the past few years, the UPU and member countries have financed and provided emergency assistance and sent experts and equipment to revive postal activity in areas affected by natural disasters.
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