Impact of new courier services in the postal sector in Africa

Abstract

Despite the advent of modem means of communications, the Post still retains a central position as the very basic means of communication which is readily accessible to all communities, particularly to the rural areas in Africa. Traditionally, postal services have been a monopoly in the public domain. The challenge we face in Africa in this regard is to continually upgrade their services and render them more efficient and easier to operate. This report presents the results of a review of new courier services and their impact on the postal organizations and services in Africa. It reveals that the postal sector in the world has played a major role in transforming societies and lately spear-heading market liberalization and competition, having to contend with private messenger and courier services. The report further shows that many African countries have begun to separate postal form telecommunications services, thus granting the posts greater administrative and financial autonomy and allowing competition from the private sector. As a result, postal administrations are embarking on organizational restructuring in order to compete more effectively in the increasingly liberalized market.