Briefing on the

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Briefing on the UPU Quality of Service Fund to
the Development Cooperation Action Group 31
March 2006 Berne, Switzerland
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Purpose of this presentation

• Review the history and development of QSF from
  2001 to 2005
• Update DCAG members on current QSF activities and
  challenges
• Raise suggestions for further coordination

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1. Quality of Service Fund 2001-2005
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Brief history of Fund

• 1999 Beijing Congress decision created Fund
• Purpose of Fund to improve quality of service in
  developing countries
• From 2001 through 2005, ICs pay DCs 7.5
  supplement to terminal dues
• Monies can only be used by administrations whose
  projects are approved by nine-member Board of
  Trustees elected by POC

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Who are main contributors to work of QSF ?

• QSF Board of Trustees
• UPU International Bureau Funds secretariat and
  executive arm
• Regional advisors
• Restricted Unions
• QSF National Coordinators in creditor postal
  administrations

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Board of Trustees

• Composition 9 Board members (2x Africa,
  2x Americas, 2x Asia-Pacific, 2x Europe,
  1x Eastern Europe)
• 5 DCs and 4 ICs
• Chairman and Deputy Chairman elected annually by
  Board members
• Board meets four times a year at POC, CA and
  other locations in January and July
• Annual report to the POC

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What does the Board do ?

• Manages the affairs of the Trust
• Invests funds
• Disburses funds
• Analyzes and approves (or disallows) projects
• Evaluates results of projects
• Revises Project Manual and Financial Manual
• Gives interpretations on QSF rules
• Communicates work of QSF to postal administrations

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What does the QSF Team in Bern do ?

• Analyzes project proposals and reports
• Follows up on project implementation, including
  compliance with Board decisions
• Coordinates QSF activities
• Supports Board of Trustees
• Financial responsibilities billing, accounting
  and financial management, cash management,
  financial statements and financial analysis

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Basic QSF facts 2001-2005

• 85 million billed by QSF in total
• 17 million billed annually on average
• 34 million funded QSF projects since 2001
• 47 million available for future projects
• 272 projects approved
• 12 regional projects
• 13 projects rejected

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Number of QSF projects worldwide
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Value of QSF projects worldwide (millions of U.S.
)
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QSF projects by region 2001-2005
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To what aspects of service does QSF apply ?
QSF must be used for projects concerning
sevenquality of service fields 1. Speed and
reliability (most projects so far) 2.
Security 3. Access to service 4. Liability and
treatment of inquiries 5. Customer
satisfaction 6. Costing and pricing systems 7.
Quality development plan
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Project budgets by area of activity
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What QSF cannot pay for ?

• QSF cannot pay for projects related to services
  that do not give rise to payment of terminal
  dues, such as
• - EMS
• - Hybrid mail
• - Postal financial services
• - Parcels
• QSF can only pay for projects to improve
  quality of letter-post service

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Main Bucharest Congress decisions

• QSF should be continued throughout Bucharest
  Congress period actually to 2012
• 4 country categories ICs, NCCs, DCs and LDCs
• Classification deferred for NCCs that received
  less than 65,000 USD in QSF funds in 2002
• Payments to DCs and LDCs are increased, while
  payments to NCCs are reduced
• NCCs and DCs now pay LDCs
• POC to study criteria for countryclassification

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Bucharest Congress changes
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2. Update on QSF activities
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Catalog of project templates

• Experience shows many projects are typical
• Board developing Catalog of project templates
  for publication on Web, based on actual projects
• First templates Quality development plans, IPS
  Light and UPU testing
• Next in line tracking systems (IPS) and
  development of a cost accounting system
• During 2006 templates related to security
  issues (e.g. eMARIA)
• IB may suggest further templates to Board

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Communications

• QSF bulletin
• Quarterly bulleting to be introduced shortly
• DCAG and other groups welcome to provide
• contributions
• BoT participation in other groups and regional
  meetings
• Broader knowledge of QSF facilitates new
• projects

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Changes to Deed of Trust and Manuals

• For the Deed of Trust
• Bucharest provisions, in particular on country
• classification four categories of countries
• Introduction of the notion of global projects
• Various necessary editorial updates (dates, etc.)
• For the Project Management Manual
• Simplification of forms and procedures
• For the Financial Management Manual
• New rules based on Bucharest Congress decisions

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Formal proposals to revise Deed of Trust and
Manuals to be presented to POC on April 5 for
consideration and approval
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What has QSF brought to UPU and administrations ?

• Greater focus on quality of service
• Greater discipline in use of terminal dues funds
• Greater sense of mutual responsibility towards
  quality by all postal administrations
• Secure, steady source of funding
• Major innovation in the financing of postal
  development cooperation

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Action plan

• Continue to promote QSF by all possible means
• Continue to help administrations to understand
  QSF rules
• Continue to develop project templates
• Liaise/coordinate as much as possible with other
  groups in charge of improvements in quality of
  service
• Coordination with the IB/DCDEV maximize
  the use of available resources

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3. Follow-up for coordination initiative
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What next ?

• First coordination meeting between QSF, DCAG,
  PDAG, Quality of Service Project Group, PSAG and
  the Terminal Dues Project Group held in Bern in
  October 2005
• Decisions taken sharing of action plans,
  detailed coordination plan (how each group could
  help the others) to be examined at the meeting
• Next coordination meeting October 2006? To be
  organized by DCAG ?