Jean-Paul Forceville from Le Groupe La Poste has been elected president of the Postal Operations Council of the Universal Postal Union (UPU).
Forceville, who is currently director of European and international relations at La Poste, received 26 votes against the 22 of his Chinese opponent Hongmei Dong. In addition, France was re-elected to the Council of Administration and the Postal Operations Council alongside 47 other member countries.
The UPU is a specialized agency of the United Nations with its headquarters in Switzerland’s capital, Bern. Founded in 1874, it is one of the oldest international organizations and is the main forum for cooperation between postal sector players.
Within the UPU, the Council of Administration ensures the continuity of work between congresses, supervises the Union’s activities and deals with regulatory, administrative, legislative and legal matters. The Postal Operations Council is the UPU body responsible for technical and operational matters.
Elected for a four-year term, Forceville will carry his vision of the UPU based on multilateralism and dialog. Commenting on his appointment, Forceville said, “It is an honor to have been elected to this position. I would like to thank all the countries for the trust they have placed in Le Groupe La Poste and in France. We will all work together to defend UPU’s virtuous and ambitious objectives in the interests of its members, customers and citizens.”