Posta Kenya inks Sh700m deal to provide August polls logistics
Postal Corporation of Kenya (PCK) Postmaster General and Chief Executive Officer Mr. Dan Kagwe. PCK has signed a three-year deal with IEBC to transport election materials countrywide to designated IEBC offices and polling centres.
The Postal Corporation of Kenya (PCK) yesterday inked a Sh700 million agreement with the electoral agency to provide logistical services during the August General Election.
Under the three-year agreement, PCK will transport election materials countrywide to designated Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) offices, warehouses and polling centres.
Speaking when the deal was signed, IEBC chief executive Marjan Hussein Marjan, said PCK would be the logistics partner for the elections, adding that such services are key to a credible electoral process.
Mr Marjan said the contract would run beyond this year’s elections and PCK would help convey election materials from one location to another.
PCK would put in place a tracking mechanism to notify IEBC officials on the status of the materials at any given point, said CEO and Postmaster-General Dan Kagwe.
PCK or Posta runs a customer web-based portal that captures the details of materials at every station of collection to the point of delivery.
Under the deal, Posta will also be expected to ensure confidentiality in handling IEBC materials and related information in its custody for security and the credibility of processes.
During the 2017 General Election, Posta earned Sh1.1 billion for logistical services offered to the IEBC in the General Election and the October 26 repeat presidential poll.
Under the previous two-year contract, Posta was paid Sh600 million for delivering ballot boxes, papers and indelible ink to polling centres, and another Sh500 million for distributing electoral materials and equipment for the repeat presidential poll.
Mr Kagwe exuded confidence in Posta’s capacity to handle distribution and logistical services for the IEBC. He added that Posta’s long-established national network of over 600 branches countrywide and experience in last-mile delivery will be an added advantage.
“We are making efforts to respond to the fast-changing consumer needs in (adopting) new technologies to enable the development of suitable last-mile delivery networks,” Mr Kagwe said.
In the recent past, Posta has partnered with government agencies such as the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA), Kenya Medical Supplies Authority (Kemsa) and the Directorate of Immigration Services as it innovates to recover from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on its operations.
