La Poste () is a

postal service The mail or post is a system for physically transporting postcards, letters, and parcels. A postal service can be private or public, though many governments place restrictions on private systems. Since the mid-19th century, national postal sy ...

company in

Senegal Senegal, officially the Republic of Senegal, is the westernmost country in West Africa, situated on the Atlantic Ocean coastline. It borders Mauritania to Mauritania–Senegal border, the north, Mali to Mali–Senegal border, the east, Guinea t ...

. La Poste is a member of the

Universal Postal Union The Universal Postal Union (UPU, ) is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) that coordinates postal policies among member nations and facilitates a uniform worldwide postal system. It has 192 member states and is headquartered in Be ...

History

The appearance of the postal system in Senegal coincides with the country's colonial conquest. It served as a critical tool of colonialism. Before colonization, information was exchanged on foot or horseback under the services of kings and local rulers. The transmission of important messages across short distances was done with the help of drums played to a specific beat. This was used to announce events such as weddings, births, baptisms, deaths, enemy attacks, and preparation for a military expedition. Under

colonialism Colonialism is the control of another territory, natural resources and people by a foreign group. Colonizers control the political and tribal power of the colonised territory. While frequently an Imperialism, imperialist project, colonialism c ...

, a quicker method of communication appeared. For rulers, communication with other rulers and with their subjects spread throughout the country became a more and more pressing need. They had in their courts an epistolary service whose task was to carry correspondences. People speaking Arabic, French and other African languages were in charge of this system which was starting to resemble a postal service. A full-fledged postal service was in operation by 1626. The year marked the start of postal communication between Senegal and France. Ships from the merchant associations of Rouen and Dieppe carried postal packages between the two countries. In 1758, these associations were replaced by the

French East India Company Compagnie des Indes () may refer to several French chartered companies involved in long-distance trading: * First French East Indies Company, in existence from 1604 to 1614 * French West India Company, active in the Western Hemisphere from 1664 t ...

that was in charge of the postal transport between Europe and the African coast. In 1781, Senegal was made a colony of France, which increased communications between the two countries. In 1850, the postal service was incorporated into a new organization and, in 1851, the postal transport between

Gorée (; "Gorée Island"; ) is one of the 19 (i.e. districts) of the city of Dakar, Senegal. It is an island located at sea from the main harbour of Dakar (), famous as a destination for people interested in the Atlantic slave trade. Its populatio ...

and Saint-Louis was transferred to people who crossed first the river and then the sea by simple pirogues. The conquest of the colony's interior by Louis Faidherbe began in 1855. The French previously controlled trading posts only along the coast. Louis Faidherbe's conquest made a postal service necessary for official communication. Plans were put in place to set up telegraph lines throughout the country. In 1879, the postal service was based on the French model. By 1900, the principal centres of the postal service were all linked together. All principal centres, in turn, were connected to the capital. A system of telegraph lines covered almost the entire colony.

Directors-General Since 1962

• Ibrahima Ndiaye DG OPT from December 1962 to January 1973 • Ndaraw Cissé DG OPT from January 1973 to June 1976 • Mahady Diallo DG OPT from June 1976 to November 1978 • Assane Ndiaye DG OPT from November 1978 to November 1983 • El Hadj Malick Sy DG OPT/OPCE from November 1983 to June 1987 • Serigne Ahmadou Camara DG OPCE from June 1987 to December 1993 • Ibrahima Sarr DG OPCE from December 1993 to May 2000 • Iba Joseph Basse DG La Poste from May 2000 to August 2004 • Mamadou Thior DG La Poste from August 2004 to December 2013 • Siré Dia DG La Poste since January 2013

External links

Official website

References

{{Postal administrations of Africa Communications in Senegal Companies of Senegal