A look-back on the old days

In Sri Lanka runners were used in the early years of the 19th century to send the mail bags from one point to another due to the non-availability of any modes of transport. While holding the mail bag which he carried on the head, in the other hand was a spear for his protection from wild animals and even robbers who could waylay him. The runner is featured in the souvenir sheet issued with three stamps to mark World Post Day – 9 October.

Foreign mail arrived in ships which were anchored in Galle harbour and pigeons were used to bring the mail to Colombo. In the 1850s the Observer, the oldest newspaper still in circulation, depended heavily on the ‘pigeon service’ to get news from abroad.

The use of horse carriages was started in 1832 to carry mail from Colombo to distant places. The Mail Coach Service was a ‘first’ in Asia and passengers also could travel in the carriages. The first service was between Colombo and Kandy.

These methods of mail transport are featured in this year’s World Post Day stamps. The souvenir sheet uses the heading ‘Ancient mail conveyance system in Ceylon’ possibly because the country was then called ‘Ceylon’. Yet it should have been better to use ‘Sri Lanka’ in place of ‘Ceylon’ since what is being shown is the ancient system that was prevalent in the country presently known as Sri Lanka.

As for World Post Day, it was on 9 October 1874 that the ‘General Postal Union’ – presently Universal Postal Union (UOPU) was born. It followed the signing of an agreement by 22 delegates who met in Berne, the capital of Switzerland, referred to as the ‘Treaty of Berne’. The Union became a specialised agency of the United Nations in 1948.

It was at the UPU Congress held in Tokyo in 1969 that 9 October was named World Post day. 

The purpose of the World Post Day is to create awareness of the role of the postal sector in people’s and businesses’ everyday lives and its contribution to the social and economic development of countries. Numerous activities are organised to generate a broader awareness of the role of the Post.

In a message on World Post Day last year, the Director-General of UPU stated that the Post can pride itself on being the oldest medium of communication, one that still plays a key role in the sending of information and goods. Referring to the development of information technology, he said that the traditional postal business line – the letter post – has been greatly challenged by faster and more efficient ways of communication thanks to the advancements in information and communication technologies. “However, successful Posts have taken these challenges as opportunities to innovate and establish new market segments, understanding that a faster and more efficient communication medium is actually what the Post needs in order to build a new business value chain.”

Admitting that there are many Posts that have yet to take full advantage of new technologies to improve their business performance, he said the message is loud and clear: the survival of the Post hinges on its ability to quickly and innovate. Customer expectations, needs and tastes are changing and the Post must change as well to meet these new demands.

World Postal Strategy for 2017-20 has identified postal industry reforms as the key driver for the future. The focus will be on Innovation, Integration and Inclusion as the main factors that will drive postal business in the future.