About the Union · Est. 1997
A restricted Union built for Caribbean postal cooperation.
Established under the Lomé IV Convention, the CPU Secretariat coordinates postal policy, security, training and international cooperation for its member administrations.
1997
Year the Union was established
Convention signed: Saint Lucia
Founding administrations: 15
Entry into force: Article 16 of the Convention
Our Mandate
What the Union exists to do.
Set out in Article 1.2 of the CPU Convention, the Union’s mandate spans customer service, security, training and international cooperation across its member administrations.
01 / CUSTOMER SERVICE
Customer Service
To improve the response to customers’ requirements for postal facilities of all kinds.
02 / SECURITY
Security
To facilitate the improvement and security of postal services.
03 / TRAINING
Training & Operations
To co-ordinate postal training arrangements and postal operational services.
04 / COOPERATION
International Cooperation
To promote international postal co-operation in the spirit and observance of the Acts of the Universal Postal Union.
Our Story
Nearly three decades of Caribbean postal cooperation.
The idea for a regional postal body was first raised in 1969, and took shape through a series of UPU-sponsored meetings before the Union was formally established in Saint Lucia in 1997.
1969
Idea first raised at a CARICOM Heads of Government Conference
1997
CPU Convention signed at Saint Lucia
15
Founding member administrations
30
Member administrations today
Between 1977 and 1997, Caribbean postal administrations met regularly under the sponsorship of the Universal Postal Union to negotiate the terms of a permanent regional body. That work culminated in September 1997, when fifteen Caribbean Postal Administrations gathered in Saint Lucia and signed the CPU Convention and its Protocols. With signatories surpassing the one-third threshold set out in Article 16, the Convention formally entered into force, and the Caribbean Postal Union was established as a restricted Union under the Lomé IV Convention. The Secretariat began operations the following year, with Mr. Apzal Khan serving as the Union’s first Technical Officer.
Founding Documents
Read the Constitution
The full text of the CPU Convention and its Protocols, including the Union’s structure, mandate and terms of reference, is available to download below.
FIRST TECHNICAL OFFICER
Mr. Apzal Khan
Appointed as the CPU’s first Technical Officer in 1998, shortly after the Union became operational.