Postal-sector reform and improvements throughout the supply chain are priorities for the current work cycle under the Doha Postal Strategy for Latin America. These efforts are crucial in a region where postal-sector development has been inhibited notably by inadequate legal frameworks.

Unregulated competition by private postal operators has resulted in market fragmentation, leaving designated operators with less than 20 per cent market share, according to UPU analyses.  Impaired capacity among designated operators has also led to reduced quality of service, and large segments of Latin American society lack access to postal services.

Strengthening post offices and making operations more efficient are top-level areas of intervention adopted at the June 2015 conference in the Dominican Republic, along with e-commerce development. Projects linked to these priorities in the coming cycle will affect many aspects of postal operations, ranging from transport logistics to addressing systems.

Second-level intervention areas include financial services, postal sector development through measures such as legal reforms, and diversification into areas including e-government services. These efforts will build on recent and ongoing initiatives in Latin America, including the extension of Correogiros, the international electronic money-transfer service.