Mozambique: INCM issues Universal Postal Operator licence to CORRE

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Mozambique: INCM issues Universal Postal Operator licence to CORRE

2:04 CAT | 15 Oct 2024

Photo: INCM

The Mozambican communications regulator, the INCM, announced on Monday that it has issued the Universal Postal Operator Licence to Correios Expresso de Moçambique (CORRE), filling a void that had existed since 2021.

“The granting of this licence is a result of the need to fill the legal void resulting from the closure, in 2021, of the public company Correios de Moçambique (Mozambican Post Office), which provided the Universal Postal Service (UPS) nationwide, prioritising economically unviable locations,” reads the statement from the National Institute of Communications of Mozambique (INCM).

It adds that the licence was issued to CORRE on Monday, as this “entity was appointed by the Government” to provide the Universal Postal Service (UPS).

“The UPS comprises the provision of postal services with specified quality, provided at all points in the national territory by the postal service operator, aiming to satisfy the communication needs of the population and public and private entities, in the development of economic and social activities,” the INCM statement explains.

In the provision of the Universal Postal Service, the regulator recalls, a satisfactory postal service must be ensured at “prices accessible to all users”, the “satisfaction of adequate quality standards, namely with regard to delivery times, density of access points, regularity and reliability of the service” and “under conditions of equality and non-discrimination”.

The UPS provider must also ensure the “continuity of the provision of the service, except in cases of force majeure”, the “evolution in the provision of the service according to the technical, economic and social environment and the needs of users”, the “fulfilment of obligations arising from international commitments assumed by the State”, and the “adequate information to the public regarding the conditions and prices of the services”.

Lusa has previously reported that the Mozambican government had appointed CORRE as the Universal Postal Service Provider in the country.

In May 2021, the Mozambican government approved a decree extinguishing the public company Correios de Moçambique, with a view to restructuring the loss-making state business sector.

The services provided by Correios de Moçambique, the government announced at the time, would gradually be provided by the private sector.

In a decree dated 24 May, the government also amended the Postal Service Licensing Regulation, now stating that the Designated Operator “is the public or private operator”, appointed “for the provision of reserved postal services and the universal postal service”.

Both decisions came into force immediately, according to documents consulted by Lusa.

On its official website, CORRE states that its shareholders are the Portuguese Post Office and the National Postal Company of Mozambique.

READ: Correios de Moçambique: Liquidation of Post Office under way – AIM report

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Liquidation of Correios de Moçambique: CIP asks if each building costs 805,000 meticais

Source: Lusa