-postmaster general
The withdrawal of North American Airlines from the Guyana route has severely affected the transport of mail to and from North America, according to the Postmaster General, Mayglen Adams.
As Postal Services across the world celebrated World Post Day last Thursday and in light of the many challenges facing the sector in Guyana, the challenge is to be “a postal sector resolutely looking towards the future”, she said.
From a local standpoint, Adams, in her message to mark the occasion, pointed to the impact of the North American Airlines’ withdrawal.
This, she said, has influenced the work of the General Post Office and customers would no doubt have experienced a reduction in the quality of service as a result.
Further, Adams noted, the limited capacity of Caribbean airline, LIAT has also affected the transport of mail to and from Caribbean destinations and this worsens during the peak season. However, she said, the postal service is working with all air carriers to have an early resolution to this problem.
Meanwhile, Adams noted that the financial viability of the local postal service is facing a threat from rising fuel prices which have caused an escalation in operating costs coupled with a reduction in traditional revenue streams.
But despite these challenges, emerging technologies have presented several opportunities to develop new products and improve existing products and services offered to customers.
She expressed gratitude to the customers, staff, social partners and workers union in the postal service for their support and contribution.
Meanwhile, the postmaster general also noted that the recently concluded Universal Postal Congress adopted a new world postal strategy which is aimed at further consolidating a worldwide physical, electronic and financial distribution network. According to her, the strategy has to be implemented in line with regional and national policies and regulations.
She pointed out too that in this regard Regional Postmasters General met in St. Lucia to finalise a strategic roadmap which will guide Caribbean postal service over the next four years.
At the national level, she said, a plan has been formulated to take account of the global and regional goals. This includes the modernization of the local network infrastructure using available technologies and developing strategic alliances to improve the operational efficiency and quality of service standards.
