The UPU organizes the annual TradePost Award to gather best practices for trade inclusion and the growth of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), acknowledge efforts to implement sustainable trade inclusion initiatives, and reward the most impactful submissions.
The objective of the TradePost Award is to recognize the trade inclusion initiatives – particularly those targeting micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) – that use the postal network and have been launched by member countries, their designated operators (DOs) and their Consultative Committee (CC) members.
Additionally, the TradePost award:
- raises awareness of the role of the UPU and the postal sector in including MSMEs and underrepresented communities;
- demonstrates how the Post can enhance opportunities for MSMEs and underrepresented communities to access domestic and global e-commerce markets;
- promotes a culture of excellence, creativity, commitment, quality and mastery;
- encourages positive cooperation and competition (“coopetition”) among postal sector stakeholders, which in turn fosters creativity, distinction and achievement;
- encourages Posts to improve their performance in developing e-commerce and trade inclusion;
- highlights best practices from within the postal sector;
- underscores the Post’s contribution to sustainable development, which includes promoting decent job creation and helping MSMEs to establish themselves and grow (8.3); increasing SME access to financial services (9.3); increasing access to ICTs (9.8); and increasing exports from developing countries (17.11).
There are four groups of initiatives for which submissions are encouraged:
- Public initiatives that use the Post for trade inclusion: Any governmental or DO initiative that promotes e-commerce and the trade inclusion of SMEs and underrepresented communities through the postal network.
- Private sector initiatives for trade inclusion: Any innovative private sector partnership for postal or financial solutions to promote e-commerce and the trade inclusion of MSMEs and underrepresented communities.
- UPU–Global Alliance for Trade Facilitation (GATF) Trade Facilitation Innovation Award: Any public or private initiative or measure that promotes innovative trade facilitation projects through the postal network.
- UPU–International Trade Centre (ITC) TradePost Award for gender inclusion through the Post: Any initiative that promotes the trade inclusion of craftswomen and women entrepreneurs through the postal network, or any improvement to an existing postal or non-postal product or service.
- All projects must be submitted through the online form;
- Within each project submission, only one category may be selected;
- Each entity may submit one project per category;
- The same project may not be submitted twice;
- All the details requested in the form should be provided in accordance with the type of stakeholder that is submitting the project and the structure of the submission template. Incomplete submissions will not be accepted. The minimum number of words indicated on the form should be respected;
- All projects submitted as part of this competition should cover work that has been completed, or is at the end of a major phase of completion, so that evidence of results – particularly social, economic and environmental results – can be provided;
- The project description has a word limit of 150–200 words. It will provide information that is crucial for the online public vote. The information should therefore be relevant, clear and compelling, and should highlight the impact of the project and how it fosters trade inclusion;
- An annotated PowerPoint presentation (no more than 20 slides) containing the above mentioned information may be submitted. A pre-recorded video of the PowerPoint presentation is also acceptable (no more than 14 minutes). Please provide links and references for more information about the project;
- The submission deadline should be respected as late submissions will not be accepted;
- Projects should be submitted in English or French;
- In addition to the short description of the project, the submission form will request the following (in separate boxes):
- Examples of links between the scope of the project and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs);
- A description of the qualitative and quantitative economic, social and environmental impacts of the project;
- A description of the project’s partnership activities; and
- A list of the main challenges and future perspectives associated with the project.
| The following excellence criteria will be used to assess public and private initiatives for trade inclusion through Posts: | The following excellence criteria will be used to assess submissions for the UPU–GATF Trade Facilitation Innovation Award: | The following excellence criteria will be used by the UPU–ITC to select the award winner for gender inclusion through the postal network: |
| Results achieved and impact generated; | Process simplification: The extent to which the project streamlines trade procedures (average time for import/export clearance; number of documents required for clearance; etc.); | Women’s economic empowerment: Measures the project’s impact on increasing access for women-led businesses to markets and postal services (number of women entrepreneurs using postal services for domestic/international sales; increase in women-owned businesses registered for postal export services; jobs created; etc.); |
Relevance to the SDGs; | Digitalization: The extent to which the project uses digital tools to improve efficiency (percentage of electronic trade documents submitted; adoption rate of online trade platforms reduction in physical processing of paperwork; etc.); | Accessibility: Measures the project’s outreach to women in rural areas (number of women using postal services in remote areas; delivery success rate in targeted areas; etc.); |
Sustainability; | Replicability: How easy it is for other countries to adopt the project (alignment with international trade facilitation standards, such as the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement; adaptability to different legal and regulatory environments; interest from other countries; etc.); | Digital trade literacy: Measures the project’s effectiveness in equipping women with digital skills to navigate postal e-commerce platforms (number of women enrolled in postal e-commerce training programmes; increase in online sales by women through the postal network; percentage of women using digital marketing tools; etc.); |
Community empowerment; | Trade cost reduction: The extent to which the project reduces trade transaction costs (logistics cost data relating to transport, storage, etc.); the cost-benefit analysis of processing paperwork for the project; etc.; | E-trade inclusion: Measures the project’s contribution to expanding access to e-commerce services for women in underserved communities (number of women using postal services; increase in women-owned businesses registered for e-commerce platforms; value of online sales by women-owned businesses; etc.); |
Partnership development; | SME inclusion: The extent to which the project effectively promotes SME participation in trade (number of SMEs implementing the project; percentage increase in SME exports; etc.); | Sustainability: Measures the project’s long-term impact on empowering women and fostering inclusive economic growth (growth in women-led businesses using the postal network for exports; potential for replication of the project in other regions; etc.); |
Replicability of the model; | Stakeholder benefits: The extent to which the project provides general non-financial benefits to stakeholders in the trade facilitation process (reduced processing time for all stakeholders; increased transparency and predictability of trade procedures; etc.). | Innovation in service delivery: Evaluates the introduction and effectiveness of new services tailored to women entrepreneurs (development of postal services that cater specifically to women’s business needs; feedback from women entrepreneurs on new services; etc.); |
Innovation of the process or solution. | Partnership: Assesses the extent and impact of partnerships formed to support women-led businesses (collaborations with local women's organizations, business networks, and government agencies; number of joint initiatives launched; etc.). |
| Opening of submissions | 14 June 2024 |
| Deadline for submissions | 04 August 2024 |
| Jury voting (during CA) | 26 August 2024 |
| Winners awarded @ CA S6 | 13 September 2024 |
- The awards are open to all UPU member countries, their DOs and CC members, and those organizations that can submit one or more proposals of a project that has already been launched.
- Applicants should explain how they offer services or implement governmental initiatives to promote the trade inclusion of MSMEs and underrepresented communities through the postal network, and their efforts to promote gender equality and address development challenges.
- Applicants should submit their nominations by clicking ''submit a nomination'' below.
- Proposals may be submitted online only. Additional supporting documents and other materials (brochures, videos, etc.) can be uploaded when completing the online form.
- The submissions will be sent to the award jury ahead of its final validation and decision.
- The UPU will assemble the international jury with members who are renowned for their achievements and leadership in the postal, trade and SME sectors. The UPU will ensure that the jury includes members with expertise in trade, sustainable development, inclusion and postal services.
- The UPU will organize a prestigious award ceremony to honour the winners and highlight their achievements. Participants will include policymakers, development partners, industry leaders and other relevant stakeholders.
- The winners, jury members, sponsors, mentors and other high-level participants will be invited to attend the award ceremony.
- The awards will be presented by the UPU Director General and/or Deputy Director General.
If you have any questions, please contact: tradepost@upu.int.