Government has advised ZAMPOST that it can no longer have a business model where its costs continue to be greater than the revenue it generates and one whose survival as a business depends on the government funding.
Technology and Science Minister Felix Mutati has said in view of the changing times, the country’s postal service provider must rethink, reboot and re-engineer its business model to one that will result in the generation of viable business propositions.
Mr Mutati said ZAMPOST’s mail delivery as a core business is no longer viable with the evolution of technology, as such, the institution must now innovate and take advantage of the digital transformation to provide a more convenient way of people and businesses to connect.
The Minister was speaking in Zambezi district yesterday where he launched the redeveloped post office as a strategic partnership with Atlasmara bank whose construction is over K2 million with a lease agreement of 20 years.
Mr Mutati said ZAMPOST must offer its strategic infrastructure and diverse possibilities through smart partnerships whose end result will reduce dependence on government.
He said government can no longer divert monies meant for critical services just to pay ZAMPOST as this dependence is not the philosophy of the new dawn administration.
“I have emphasized to ZAMPOST that government is not competent to dispatch charity on a sustainable basis. The days of charity are long gone, you must learn to stand on your own” Mr Mutati said.
Mr Mutati has since tasked Post Master General Brighton Ngoma that whilst mail delivery remains part of the services, ZAMPOST should be transformed to include e-commerce, focus on public service delivery by making its facilities as one stop shops for all government services and set a benchmark for smart partnerships which must extend to providing better services, particularly in the rural areas.
Speaking at the same event, Post Master General Brighton Ngoma revealed that ZAMPOST intends to develop the Lusaka Main Post Office into an office park using the public private partnership business model.
Mr Ngoma also implored the private sector to approach ZAMPOST for possible partnerships especially that government is constructing 30 more post offices across the country.
He said ZAMPOST’s strategic intent is to be an ultimate delivery platform of local government services.
Meanwhile, Atlasmara Acting Managing Director Bobbline Cheembela said since the opening of the just launched branch which also houses the post office, 2,500 customer accounts cutting across the public sector, corporate, SMEs and retail customers have been opened.
Mr Cheembela said the key objective of this public private partnership with ZAMPOST is to drive financial access and that it is the bank’s expectation that this strategic partnership will be extended to other locations countrywide to stimulate economic activity.
