Arab region

The region comprises the countries and territories of the Arab region. The Development Cooperation implemented in the region is managed by a regional team at UPU IB headquarters and two regional offices located in Cairo (Egypt) and Doha (Qatar).

Since the beginning of the cycle, 32 activities from 11 development and cooperation projects were executed in the Arab region. These activities included capacity-building workshops, equipment’s procurement and consultancy missions related to the ORE project, financial and social inclusion, digital transformation, postal sector reform and other interregional and national projects aimed at improving the Posts’ quality of service. The execution rate at the midpoint of the cycle is 80% with the successful achievement of the key performance indicators (KPIs), especially for the ORE project. 

As part of the level-one ORE project in the Arab region, six thematic regional workshops were held, with the successful participation of 293 participants. Ten consultant missions were carried out. For all on-site process review missions, the UPU operational experts worked hand-in-hand with local staff to review postal operations and recommend improvements so that the Posts can achieve the project KPIs and, more importantly, improve their operational performance. 

Two training workshops on postal financial services, one for digital services and diversification, and one on postal reform as well one workshop on philately were held. In addition, four consultancy missions were carried out: two on quality of service improvement for electronic payment methods and two on postal sector reform to help the beneficiary countries improve their processes in that area.

As the starting point for the regionalization of the UPU technical assistance programme, the Regional development plans (RDPs), introduced by the IB, are based on two fundamental principles:

1. The integration of all IB cooperation activities building on the role of the Development and Cooperation Directorate (DCDEV) as a “single window” interface between the various IB directorates and the countries in need of assistance, resulting in the harmonization of activities conducted in the field by the DCDEV regional programmes, implemented by the regional field experts (RFEs) in cooperation with other players, including Restricted unions (RUs) and consultants; and
2. A regional approach designed to respond to each region’s specific needs by creating synergies with players at the regional level and strengthening and diversifying cooperation mechanisms in the field (partnerships with RUs, regional training centres, economic organizations, etc).

Methodology 

The methodology for the formulation of the RDPs for 2026–2029 aims to promote a shared vision of the deployment of UPU technical assistance activities, and to reinforce close relations with the RUs, international organizations and the various postal sector stakeholders. The RDPs also map regional priorities as defined by postal leaders, authorities and development partners to create synergies with the global postal vision.

 The regional priorities contained in each RDP are then translated into regional thematic projects that should not only lead to effective coordination between development cooperation activities and the actions launched under other funding sources, but also enable each region to benefit from targeted assistance and increased, more active involvement of the RUs.

RDP stakeholders

The RDP is the reference system that groups together all the development activities to be carried out in favour of the countries of each region by the various players, both within the IB and at regional level. It is a common platform for all cooperation players, enabling them to pursue the same objectives and share the same priorities while avoiding duplication of effort as regards both the allocation of resources and the deployment of activities.