KABUL, Oct. 8 (Xinhua) -- Waiting for his turn to deliver several newly issued passports to their owners in Sara-e-Shamali and Khair Khana neighborhoods in northern Kabul, postman Zakihullah said he was happy to serve people through his work.
"I deliver passports to the recipients at the gates of their homes. It takes a maximum of one hour to make a delivery. Otherwise, it takes only 10 to 15 minutes to hand over a passport to an addressee in Karta-e-Parwan or Sara-e-Shamali," the 20-year-old postman told Xinhua.
Zakihullah made the remarks as Afghanistan is set to mark World Post Day on Friday, commemorating the founding of the Universal Postal Union (UPU) on Oct. 9, 1874.
Postal services, like other national infrastructure, were severely affected by more than four decades of war and foreign intervention in Afghanistan. In recent years, efforts have been made to rebuild and modernize the country's postal system and bring its services closer to international standards.
Afghan Post, the country's state-owned postal service provider, handles both domestic and international mail and cargo. It provides services not only to people inside Afghanistan but also to Afghans living abroad and foreigners seeking to send or receive letters, documents, parcels and other items, including educational certificates and marriage documents.
"The delivery of passports and other documents began about two years ago. I deliver passports to the doors of the recipients, or submit them to the post office in their area, where the recipients can collect them," said Zakihullah, who joined Afghan Post two and a half years ago.
Zabihullah Omar, director of business development at Afghan Post, said the company expanded its services to Kabul and all 34 provinces as part of efforts to upgrade and modernize its operations.
"Afghan Post currently delivers government correspondence, letters, written documents, passports and educational certificates," Omar told Xinhua at his office.
He said the company planned to further modernize and computerize its facilities and services to bring them in line with postal systems in other countries.
"We also provide transportation services for postal items and cargo inside the country and to 192 countries overseas," Omar said.
Afghanistan is a member of the UPU, and a delegation from Afghan Post attended the Asia-Pacific Postal Union (APPU) Congress held in Bangkok recently, where it exchanged experiences with postal authorities from other countries, Omar said.
To facilitate correspondence and mail delivery, Afghan Post has also introduced postal codes for cities across Afghanistan, an initiative approved by the UPU.
Afghans have expressed satisfaction with the post services. "Expanding facilities and modernizing Afghan Post are beneficial to the people. It is like a one-stop service, as we have the post office here and can also pay bank fees here," said Sakhi Murad, who came from the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif to obtain a stamp from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for his educational documents through Afghan Post.
Murad called for expanding postal facilities in rural areas to make services more accessible and reduce difficulties for people living in the countryside. ■
