Hongkong Post provides reliable, efficient and universal postal services at affordable prices to meet the needs of Hong Kong and its international postal obligations. Since August 1, 1995, Hongkong Post has operated as a trading fund department. This gives it a higher degree of flexibility in resource management and enables it to respond more effectively to changes in markets and customer needs, improve productivity, efficiency and customer service, and introduce new services to its customers.

    During the year, Hongkong Post handled 1.27 billion items of mail, or a daily average of 3.5 million items, representing a decrease of 7.5 per cent over 2001. Local mail accounted for 85.6 per cent of the items processed and overseas mail for 14.4 per cent. Some 11 023 tonnes of letter mail and 1 702 tonnes of parcels were dispatched overseas by air, representing a decrease of 5.6 per cent on 2001. The United States, the Mainland, the United Kingdom, Japan and Taiwan were Hongkong Post's major partners in letter mail while Japan, the United States, Canada, the Mainland and Taiwan were its major partners in parcels. The decrease in mail traffic was mainly attributed to the economic downturn in Hong Kong.

    Performance pledges are published for the delivery of mail, philatelic, counter and public Certification Authority services. Hongkong Post achieved a very high performance level in most of its pledges. In particular, it was able to achieve a success rate of 99.2 per cent for next-day delivery of local letters.

    In March, an independent firm was appointed to conduct the sixth annual public perception survey of Hongkong Post's services. The overall satisfaction levels remained high, with some 97 per cent, 96 per cent and 99 per cent of customers in the general public, business and philately groups, respectively, being satisfied or very satisfied with Hongkong Post's services. The survey also found that Hongkong Post has ranked second among the best service organisations for three years in a row.

    Hongkong Post chose 'Care from the Heart' as the theme for developing its service culture in 1998. To sustain this customer service culture and a spirit of teamwork in Hongkong Post, a series of activities was conducted during the year to sustain the momentum of service improvement. It included promoting 'A Complaint is a Gift' culture across the organisation and providing proactive counter service at the front-line. Hongkong Post will continue to invest in staff training and development to maintain staff alertness and improve skills in providing quality service to customers.

    To promote electronic commerce in Hong Kong, Hongkong Post established the first public and legally recognised Certification Authority (CA) and launched the Hongkong Post e-Cert service on January 31, 2000, marking a milestone in the development of electronic commerce in Hong Kong. The Hongkong Post CA service provides a secure environment that addresses the basic concerns of authenticity, integrity, confidentiality and non-repudiation in doing business in cyber space. The Hongkong Post CA issues and manages digital certificates for individuals and businesses to facilitate secure electronic transactions conducted over an open network. With the use of digital certificates, subscribers can electronically prove their identity and digitally sign in the same way as in the paper-based world under the legal framework of the Electronic Transactions Ordinance.

    Hongkong Post, representing Hong Kong, China, is one of the seven founding members of the Asia PKI Forum (APKIF) formed in June 2001. The other members of the APKIF are China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, Chinese Taipei and Malaysia while Macau and India are associate and affiliate members, respectively.

    To foster regional and international cooperation in Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) related matters such as cross-certification, application development, and interoperability arrangements, a Hong Kong PKI Forum (HKPKIF) comprising 29 organisations from both the government and commercial sectors was established in October. The HKPKI will represent Hong Kong at international forums including the APKIF. The Postmaster General was elected chairman of the Forum.

    As part of a drive to boost e-business and E-government, a new multi-use smart ID card will come with an option of a one-year's free digital certificate when it is introduced in Hong Kong from mid-2003. This will provide Hongkong Post a unique opportunity to offer to every ID card holder in Hong Kong the free use of digital certificates in secure electronic transactions.

    The international courier service, Speedpost, maintained its role in serving both the business community and individuals. The delivery network covered 92 destinations including major trading partners such as the Mainland, Japan, the United States, Taiwan and Australia. The establishment of 'time certain' service to destinations closely linked with Hong Kong trade has been a priority in Speedpost's service upgrading. In addition to Macau, Singapore, Tokyo, Osaka, and Frankfurt, the network of this premium service was expanded to eight more cities, namely, Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Fuzhou, Xiamen, Sydney, Melbourne and Seoul. Delivery to these designated cities by the pledged time the next working day after posting is guaranteed.

    The Hongkong Post Logistics service, launched in 2000, caters for the growing market demand for a seamless, cost-effective and one-stop integrated logistics solution for businesses. This service provides a comprehensive range of supply chain management services. It also accepts customer orders on behalf of merchants at post offices and collects payments for purchases from end-customers.

    In December, Hongkong Post reached a new milestone in its services by launching a Wine Fulfilment Service in collaboration with Australia Post. With the support of the West Australian Government, Hongkong Post and Australia Post team up with renowned wineries in Australia to provide a one-stop shop service for Hong Kong customers to order Australian wines which are to be delivered to the customers at door within two to five business days via Speedpost, with all duties and charges paid.

    Eight sets of stamps were issued during the year, featuring the Year of the Horse; Hong Kong Art Collections; Cyber Industry in Hong Kong; Hong Kong, China-Canada Joint Stamp Issue on Corals; Beijing-Kowloon Through Trains; The 5th Anniversary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region; Rocks of Hong Kong; and Christmas Stamps. With new initiatives incorporated in the stamp design, Hongkong Post has brought to the public and philatelists pleasant surprises and novelties. A special printing technique, thermography, was applied for the first time to the set of 'Rocks of Hong Kong' stamps during the printing process. This special process and coating greatly enhanced both the tactile and the visual appeal of the stamps in depicting the structure of the rocks. As an added feature to mark the approach of Christmas, the image of each icon on the 'Christmas Stamp' was highlighted by a second set of perforations. Sparkling silver foils were also applied on each stamp providing a special finishing touch for philatelists. There are 38 post offices equipped with a philatelic counter to better serve the needs of philatelists.

    A set of new definitive stamps was issued in October to replace the old set. This is the second set of definitive stamps issued since the establishment of the HKSAR. It comprises 16 denominations and the design concept focuses on the harmony of the contrasting Eastern and Western cultures that co-exist in Hong Kong. Issued in 1999, the old set of definitive stamps was withdrawn from general sale but remains valid for the prepayment of postage.

    To reinforce young collectors' interest in producing stamp exhibits and to promote philately among students, Hongkong Post organised the third Inter-School Competition on Stamp Exhibits with the support of the Education Department and the Commercial Press (HK) Ltd in March. This competition received a favourable response with a total entry of 147 frames of stamp exhibits.

    During the year, Hongkong Post participated in a number of world-class stamp exhibitions to promote the collection of Hong Kong stamps. These included the World Stamp Exhibition held in the Republic of Korea; the International Stamp Fair and Exhibition held in the Netherlands; the International Stamp and Coin Expo held in Beijing; and the World Stamp Exhibition held in Monaco.

    In February, a new Tin Yuet Post Office, in Tin Shui Wai, was opened for business, bringing the total number of post offices to 131. The office has a new layout and design that accentuates Hongkong Post's progressive corporate image. It has multi-purpose counter units designed to provide more convenient and efficient service to customers.

    Introduced on March 14, 1960, Mobile Post Offices have been providing convenient postal services for residents living in the rural and remote areas of the New Territories. In November, Hongkong Post launched Hong Kong's first-ever LPG Mobile Post Office in the eastern part of the New Territories. The use of liquefied petroleum gas helps reduce vehicle emissions and provide a cleaner environment for staff, customers and local residents. This new Mobile Post Office adopted a new design and was equipped with a 'tropical roof', a liquid crystal display monitor for displaying public notices, and electronic weighing equipment as well as a retractable canopy providing protection for customers against sun and rain.

    Hong Kong has maintained a high international reputation for its efficient postal services. Hongkong Post has participated in the activities organised by the Universal Postal Union (UPU) and the Asian Pacific Postal Union (APPU) as a member of China's delegation. In technical meetings and activities on postal business not limited to states, Hongkong Post also attended as a separate postal administration using the name 'Hong Kong, China'. The high status of Hongkong Post in the international postal arena can be illustrated by its being re-elected as a board member of the UPU Express Mail Service Cooperative (EMSC) and the Asia Pacific Post Cooperative (APPC).

    Hongkong Post attained Silver Level Certification, the second highest level of achievement among more than 100 postal administrations for outstanding Express Mail Service performance in 2001. The Express Mail Service is known as Speedpost in Hong Kong. This award was based on the UPU EMSC's Audit and Measurement Programme conducted by an independent consultant in areas including delivery performance and timely provision of tracking data.

    During the year, Hongkong Post attended a number of international meetings such as the UPU Postal Operations Council meetings and the Council of Administration meetings in Berne, Switzerland, and the APPU Executive Council Meetings in Bangkok, Thailand, as a member of China's delegation. In addition, Hongkong Post participated in the board meetings of the UPU EMSC and APPC, the meetings of the UPU Advanced Electronic Services Group, the UPU Terminal Dues Action Group, and the operations workshops held by the Asia Pacific Post.

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