Today we celebrate World Post Day, established to comemmorate the foundation of the Universal Postal Union – UPU in Bern on October 9, 1874. The purpose of World Post Day is to bring awareness to the Post's role in the everyday lives of people and businesses, as well as its contribution to global social and economic development. The UPU's member countries are encouraged to organize their own national activities to celebrate the event, including everything from the introduction or promotion of new postal products and services, to the organization of open days at post offices, mail centres and postal museums.

Under the theme “ Local Service. Global Reach”, this year’s campaign highlights the Post as a vital public service rooted in communities and driven by people. From rural villages to urban centres, we honour the Post for People.

For countries participating in the UPU International Letter-Writing Competition for Young People, awards are often presented to national winners on October 9. This year, the winners were honored during the 28th UPU Congress held in Dubai in September. Reyyan Demiriz (Türkiye) won first prize, with Phạm Đoàn Minh Khuê (Viet Nam) taking second place and Kanlanfe Ingrid Ouali (Burkina Faso) receiving third prize. Honourable mentions were awarded to young writers from Brazil, China, Georgia, Iran and Malaysia.

„This World Post Day, we celebrate the vital role of the postal sector as a lifeline, bringing essential services to everyone, everywhere. The postal network is among the largest and farthest-reaching service infrastructures in the world. With more than 600,000 post offices, it provides communities everywhere with reliable access to communication, commercial, financial and social services. From the most remote areas to the busiest cities, the postal network is a bridge, connecting people to the wider world. The recently adopted UPU Strategy aligns closely with this year’s theme “Local Service. Global Reach.” It envisions the UPU as a driving force in building an interconnected, inclusive and sustainable society, supported by a seamless and innovative postal network that is capable of delivering high-quality, modern services to people around the world. Through this year’s theme, we also want to celebrate the women and men who make this extraordinary universal service possible – the 4.6 million postal workers across 192 member countries, whose dedication enables the postal network to continue to serve billions of people every day. We applaud all those workers who innovate at headquarters, who process millions of parcels at sorting centres, and who deliver by foot, bicycle or vehicle every single day. On this World Post Day, I urge us all to work together in ensuring that the Post continues to offer quality services to everyone, everywhere, connecting local communities to the world. Let us unite to make the postal network more accessible, more reliable and more inclusive than ever“, said in his statement Masahiko Metoki, Director General of the UPU International Bureau.

Today, the Universal Postal Union is a specialized United Nations agency enabling the global unity of the postal territory through its activities, consisting of 192 member countries that agree to the same terms for conducting international postal duties. The Union is an international organization that coordinates postal policies and rules among its member countries, thus facilitating a uniform worldwide postal system. It represents the first universal world organization and is the oldest form of multilateral cooperation in the world.