RIYADH, 18 July 2003 — As part of an ongoing project to privatize the postal sector and to provide postal services to remote areas, the Kingdom has opened several post offices and allowed private sector companies to set up more private postal agencies covering some 6,000 towns and villages across the country. This was announced here yesterday by Dr. Khaled Faris Al-Otaibi, director general of postal services.
“The privatization scheme has contributed to the growth of the postal sector in the Kingdom and has helped the growth of private companies seeking a postal franchise,” Al-Otaibi said. “Since the launch of the privatization program, we have been looking forward to making maximum use of modern technology, particularly with the help of the Internet, which also helps trace mail from the point of receipt to the point of delivery,” he added.
The postal chief said his department handled 939 million local and international mails, 1.54 million express items and 665,000 parcels. Postal services reached 6,264 towns and villages across the Kingdom, where a total of 461 government-run post offices, 185 branch offices, 72 private post offices, 770 postal agencies and 97 express mail centers are currently operating.
In addition, an expanded postal project operates every year during Haj. A number of special post offices are opened in the holy places to cater to the requirements of the pilgrims. Every year, the Directorate of Postal Services handles about one million outgoing mails and nearly a half million incoming mails during Haj, the director general said.
He said their opening hours would be extended this year.
Al-Otaibi said the private post offices earned 15 percent commission from the sale of stamps. Their earnings also include 20 percent commission on letters and 100 percent on charges levied on subscribers’ boxes.
He said statistics revealed that the volume of mail is declining due to the increasing use of e-mail as a means of communication. The opening of courier services following privatization of the sector and the reduced rates charged for international calls also contributed to the decrease in surface mail.
