The communications regulator INCM announced this Tuesday, October 15, that it had awarded the Universal Postal Operator licence to the company CORRE (Correios Expresso de Moçambique), overcoming the void that had existed since 2021.
‘The delivery of this licence stems from the need to fill the legal void resulting from the extinction, in 2021, of the public company Correios de Moçambique, which was the provider of the Universal Postal Service (SPU) throughout the national territory, prioritising economically unviable locations,’ reads the statement from the National Communications Institute of Mozambique (INCM), quoted by Lusa.
The statement adds that the licence was handed over to CORRE on Monday (14), which is the ‘entity appointed by the government’ to provide the Universal Postal Service.
‘The UPS comprises the offer of postal services with specified quality, provided at all points in the national territory by the postal service operator, aimed at satisfying the communication needs of the population and public and private entities, in the development of economic and social activities,’ explains the INCM.
The regulator points out that the provision of the UPS must ensure that the postal service is provided at ‘prices that are accessible to all users; that adequate quality standards are met, particularly with regard to delivery times, density of access points, regularity and reliability of the service; and under conditions of equality and non-discrimination’.
The document explains that the UPS provider must also ensure the ‘continuity of service provision, except in cases of force majeure; the evolution of service provision in line with the technical, economic and social environment and the needs of users; the fulfilment of obligations arising from international commitments undertaken by the state; and adequate information to the public on the conditions and prices of services’.
Lusa previously reported that the government had appointed CORRE, the Designated Postal Operator, as the country’s Universal Postal Service Provider.
In May 2021, the government approved a decree abolishing the public company Correios de Moçambique, with a view to restructuring the state-owned business sector after several losses.
The services provided by Correios de Moçambique (the government announced at the time) would gradually be taken over by the private sector.
In a decree of 24 May, the government also amended the Postal Service Licensing Regulation, stating that the Designated Operator ‘is the public or private operator appointed to provide the reserved postal services and the universal postal service’.
Both decisions came into force immediately, according to the documents consulted by Lusa. On its official website, CORRE states that its shareholders are Correios de Portugal and Empresa Nacional de Correios de Moçambique.
