UPU-Conference of Commonwealth Postal Administrations sign accord

The Universal Postal Union (UPU) has renewed its collaboration with the Conference of Commonwealth Postal Administrations (CCPA) on knowledge-exchange and securing funding for training postal staff in the Commonwealth region.

UPU Director General Bishar A. Hussein (left) with CCPA Chair David Roberts at the Berne signing

Under the memorandum of understanding in force until 2017, the CCPA will fund at least six scholarships for Commonwealth nationals to attend courses at the Caribbean Postal Training Institute from now until 2017. This centre – located in Bridgetown, Barbados - was opened by the UPU in 2014.

“The UPU is firmly committed to ensuring that postal staff are adequately trained to deal with the many challenges facing the sector today,” said UPU Director General Bishar A. Hussein .

“This agreement will contribute to facilitating the UPU’s efforts to keep that pledge,” he added.

As a demonstration of that commitment, the UPU has already established six regional training centres worldwide since 2013.

For his part, CCPA Chair David Roberts added: “The CCPA is now in a far stronger position to build an ever closer relationship with the UPU, support the UPU’s own efforts in technical cooperation and explore new areas for future collaboration.”

The CCPA is a non-governmental organization bringing together 66 designated operators of the Commonwealth.

The latter is an association of 53 countries including the United Kingdom and its former dependencies that have maintained cooperative relations and share the British monarch as their symbolic head.

The memorandum was signed on 16 February at the UPU International Bureau in Berne, Switzerland.

The previous agreement between the UPU and CCPA was signed in 2012.