Democratic Republic of the Congo  -  Major disruption to postal operations

The designated operator of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Société Congolaise des Postes et Télécommunications (SCPT), wishes to inform other Union member countries and their designated operators that, owing to the ongoing armed conflict in the east of the country, postal operations are severely disrupted in the eastern provinces, in particular North Kivu, South Kivu and Ituri.   The logistics chain has been severely impacted by the conflict, leading to considerable delays and temporary suspensions in the processing of domestic and international postal items.   For the SCPT, ensuring the safety of its staff, the protection of postal items and the security of its facilities remains the top priority. Faced with these challenges, it is actively exploring alternative solutions, in close collaboration with the United Nations agencies and humanitarian organizations in the region, to facilitate the secure transport of urgent or humanitarian postal items to the affected populations, in accordance with international postal agreements and humanitarian principles.   In this context, the SCPT kindly asks other Union member countries and their designated operators to:   * share this information throughout their national and humanitarian networks, to ensure awareness among those concerned; * cooperate with the SCPT on all joint initiatives aiming to utilize secure humanitarian channels to transport international postal items; * give special priority to items in transit to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, until the situation stabilizes.        The SCPT is doing its utmost to ensure that regular postal services can be re-established as soon as security and safety conditions will allow.   Any questions or requests for information should be addressed to the SCPT’s International Relations department via e-mail (poste_@scpt.cd) or telephone (+243 991 555 475).   The SCPT thanks  all Union member countries and their designated operators for their understanding, and counts on their support in this matter. The SCPT will notify them via EmIS of any change in this situation.   The content of this message will also be published via International Bureau circular.