Preserving a legacy: Adapting Lebanon's postal service to a digital world

The mail carrier represented an era before the establishment of the State of Greater Lebanon, before inventing telephones, and before technology infiltrated our lives.

Today, despite the prevalence of email, social media, and automation, the role of traditional postal services is far from over.

In fact, it remains the largest logistical network in the world, with over 650,000 post offices and 5.3 million employees, according to United Nations statistics.

The postal service acts as the official conduit for nations, facilitating the swift transfer and tracking of packages and documents. Moreover, it enables businesses to engage in e-commerce, reaching customers wherever they may be.

Postal centers also play a crucial role in facilitating government transactions, including fee collection and tax payments, thereby ensuring revenue for the state treasury.

However, Lebanon faces challenges in its postal sector.

The same company has operated the postal service since 1998, with the contract renewed approximately eight times, without any modifications to its terms, which have been deemed unfavorable to the state. It provides only a tiny percentage of revenue to the treasury.

Over the years, from 1999 to 2019, the sector's total contribution to the treasury amounted to a mere $5 million, an amount that could have been achieved annually, according to experts.

Due to the successive extensions of the company's contract without reforms, there has been a lack of significant investment and modernization in the postal sector. Consequently, the number of employees remains stagnant at 700.

The financial crisis has further exacerbated the situation. In the past year, several public bidding rounds have been held in an attempt to privatize Lebanon's postal service through a new contract.

Another round is expected to take place this Wednesday.

This time, the terms of the bidding process have been developed to broaden the competition among interested participants.

According to sources, four companies have obtained the bidding documents. It is worth noting that the global logistics solutions company, CMA CGM, has recently expressed interest in participating in the bidding process, citing its sufficient expertise.

The outcome remains uncertain, but could we witness a new era in Lebanon's postal sector?