Amidst the global pandemic the 27^th Universal Congress was held in Sub-Saharan Africa in Abigen/Berne on August 9^th – 27^th, 2021 and was the first ever to be delivered in a hybrid format with over 1,000 participants joining the meetings remotely.  This congress marked the end to the tenure of Mr. Bushar Hussein in his capacity as Deputy Director General of the Universal Postal Union and Pascal Clivaz, Deputy Director General. I wish to pause for a moment and place on record, our profound gratitude for their sterling contribution to the development of the Postal Sector regionally and internationally.  I wish them every success in their future endeavours.

The year 2021 marks another significant milestone and another year of celebration amidst the global challenges including the onslaught of the COVID -9 pandemic, which have positioned us to adapt to a “new normal” and to innovate to survive.

The global postal theme penned by our New Director Mr. Mashiko Metoki is “Innovate to recover” which is indicative of the path that is set before us if we intend to bounce back from what the pandemic and technology has thrown at us, as we strive continuously to remain relevant.

As we continue to create awareness and innovate we are reminded of the importance to do so, which is to achieve recovery status.  The sooner we accept the fact that the “old normal” is driven farther and farther away out of our reach, the better for us, as the “new normal” takes its place. As William Pollard stated, “Learning and innovation go hand in hand. The arrogance of success is to think that what you did yesterday will be sufficient for tomorrow.”

It cannot be overly stressed that business transformation is a must, which is inevitable.  The Nevis Postal service cannot escape the imperative to transform and adapt.  Efforts are being made to ensure that we adapt to the “new normal” as it makes its presence felt.

We are making strides to recovery mode; and are proud to announce that the Gingerland Post Office will be rejuvenated with some activity.  Some of our Postmen will be transferred there and will perform their daily task from the confines of the office in Gingerland.  As time progresses the intention is to serve the Gingerland General populace with matching services offered at the Charlestown Post. 

Additionally, we are about to test our counter automation program modules which, upon completion, will be rolled out as soon as the testing production is deemed successful, but not before the training of our staff.  This road to recovery will be instrumental in the upgrade of our counter operations and our transaction turnaround time will drastically be reduced.  Operation Speedpac will also be positively affected by this automation.  Hand-written receipts and long waiting processing lines will form part of the “old normal”.  I want to commend the management and staff for their willingness to embrace these innovations and changes while they learn new skills or improve on old ones.

Furthermore, as part of our celebrations of World Post Day 2021, the centenarians of Nevis will be honoured with a stamp issue as we salute those of Golden age to make their presence felt and remembered.  This initiative is a historical moment in the lives of our esteemed Nevisian elderly persons. These centenarians give us hope and inspiration to push forward to “innovate to recover”, for our services touch all age groups; besides they have all made their mark in the development of our society and should not go unnoticed. It is my view that this act is an innovative way to join other segments of our society to show honour and respect to an important age group.  I say congratulations to all the proposed recipients.

Amidst all that is happening around us we are becoming stronger than ever, continuing to initiate and employ means that will set us on the path to recovery in a way that will be beneficial to all.  Our very survival depends on it.

We continue to stress that Post plays a vital and an essential role in our society.  It is imperative that we keep our eyes on the vision to step up on our operations to meet the demands of our citizens, and fall in line with the way we now communicate and conduct business by a touch and go, or click and go in the digital space.  Technological innovation is vital for us to remain relevant, so that our customers can continue to see the need for our services.  Transformation is key, and not just to transform, but to do so speedily and effectively.

Postal Development is a key area of concentration of the UPU’s mission, which was highlighted at Congress this year.  New Development Policies were formulated and adapted for 2022-2025.  This paved the way for UPU to execute and adopt larger-scale projects and for these projects to be incorporated into national development policies; thus giving us the drive to be innovative in our little island, Nevis.

The theme “innovate to recover” is very timely and is a reminder that where we are now is not our final destination but rather an opportunity to innovate to meeting our goals and recover so as to continue to provide the essential services to our local, regional and international communities.

I wish to take this opportunity to welcome and congratulate the newly elected Deputy Director General of UPU Marjan Osvald, and his Deputy Director General.  With their wealth of knowledge and experience, the recovery for Post regionally and internationally is within reach.

On that note I wish everyone Happy World Post Day, and I also wish the Nevis Postal Services every success in their month of activities.

Thank you and God bless.