Postal services, call centres to merge
Sep 19, 2010
THE Government will merge Posta Uganda services with those of the district information call centres when the laying of the National Backbone Infrastructure or the fibre optic cable is completed, the ICT minister said last week.
By Paul Tentena
THE Government will merge Posta Uganda services with those of the district information call centres when the laying of the National Backbone Infrastructure or the fibre optic cable is completed, the ICT minister said last week.
Aggrey Awori said this would ensure quick-and-fast delivery of services.
He also urged the Government to grant Posta Uganda monopoly to deliver all government mails and parcels throughout the country.
Awori pointed out that this would ensure that the parastatal remained competitive in the challenging postal business world.
The minister also urged Posta Uganda to venture into the lucrative money transfer business.
“Take the mandate and overtake these telecommunication companies as far as money transfers are concerned. Work out a partnership with big supermarkets to see 24-hour delivery of mails,†he said during the swearing-in of the new board at the ICT ministry boardroom.
The board is headed by Dr. Odimbe Were with Shem Jatiko, Flavia Mukasa, Julius Kinyera, Comfort Piwang, Nelson Nkojjo, Paul Odoi and Christopher Mugisha as its members.
Awori noted that technology had tremendously reduced the capacity of post offices, urging the new board to work vigorously.
“The former board you are replacing inherited a lot of debts from URA and NSSF. They nearly froze our accounts. I urge you that this should not happen again,†stressed Awori.
Posta Uganda was founded in 1998 after the giant Uganda Posts and Telecommunications Corporation was split into Uganda Communications Commission, PostBank, and uganda telecom.
However, the firm has been in a sorry state with persistent customer complaints over stolen mail, poor service delivery, rude staff and huge debts.
But the recent restructuring and reforms by the new management team led by James Arinaitwe, are paying dividends.
“Cost control and frugal management of cash will continue to drive the business decisions in the company and with the expected growth in revenue performance, it is envisaged that the company’s overall profitability levels will improve,†Arinaitwe said.
However, the firm still faces a huge debt portfolio although current liability dropped to sh13.4b, down from sh15.2b the previous year. Long-term borrowing dropped to sh342m, from sh849m.
“The long-term plan is to continue dialogue with the shareholder (Government) to subsidise the universal service obligation.â€
The firm’s future outlook is to automate its money transfer services, opening up of communication centers, strengthen the courier segment and continue engaging agency services.
THE Government will merge Posta Uganda services with those of the district information call centres when the laying of the National Backbone Infrastructure or the fibre optic cable is completed, the ICT minister said last week.
Aggrey Awori said this would ensure quick-and-fast delivery of services.
He also urged the Government to grant Posta Uganda monopoly to deliver all government mails and parcels throughout the country.
Awori pointed out that this would ensure that the parastatal remained competitive in the challenging postal business world.
The minister also urged Posta Uganda to venture into the lucrative money transfer business.
“Take the mandate and overtake these telecommunication companies as far as money transfers are concerned. Work out a partnership with big supermarkets to see 24-hour delivery of mails,†he said during the swearing-in of the new board at the ICT ministry boardroom.
The board is headed by Dr. Odimbe Were with Shem Jatiko, Flavia Mukasa, Julius Kinyera, Comfort Piwang, Nelson Nkojjo, Paul Odoi and Christopher Mugisha as its members.
Awori noted that technology had tremendously reduced the capacity of post offices, urging the new board to work vigorously.
“The former board you are replacing inherited a lot of debts from URA and NSSF. They nearly froze our accounts. I urge you that this should not happen again,†stressed Awori.
Posta Uganda was founded in 1998 after the giant Uganda Posts and Telecommunications Corporation was split into Uganda Communications Commission, PostBank, and uganda telecom.
However, the firm has been in a sorry state with persistent customer complaints over stolen mail, poor service delivery, rude staff and huge debts.
But the recent restructuring and reforms by the new management team led by James Arinaitwe, are paying dividends.
“Cost control and frugal management of cash will continue to drive the business decisions in the company and with the expected growth in revenue performance, it is envisaged that the company’s overall profitability levels will improve,†Arinaitwe said.
However, the firm still faces a huge debt portfolio although current liability dropped to sh13.4b, down from sh15.2b the previous year. Long-term borrowing dropped to sh342m, from sh849m.
“The long-term plan is to continue dialogue with the shareholder (Government) to subsidise the universal service obligation.â€
The firm’s future outlook is to automate its money transfer services, opening up of communication centers, strengthen the courier segment and continue engaging agency services.